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‘This is a bad idea.’ Betty’s mind chanted as her feet moved her in the direction of the bunker. The trees blew shadows around her and if she stopped for too long, she swore she could hear the cackling of fire from the pits of hell, because you know, that was definitely where she was going.
It was a terrible idea, suggesting that they should take time to figure things out. There was nothing to figure out. Okay, yes the fake dating and the musical had bought up some long buried feelings, and yes she couldn’t stop thinking about him, about what happened in his garage. But honestly, she wasn’t sure what there was to figure out. She didn’t need to question her relationship with Jughead. She loved him. She couldn’t fall back into this game of “will they, won’t they” with Archie.
Her self-assurance was crumbing though with every step she took towards the bunker; every step she took towards him; especially after that kiss.
There had been no excuse for it. There was no life threatening danger, no fake dating. On the total number of two times they had kissed – she was not counting the time 8-year-old Archie kissed her and asked her to marry him – it had been her who had initiated it. This time though, she wasn’t sure; it could have been Archie, but it could have been her.
It just didn’t make any sense.
The scene kept replaying itself in her mind, it was like a movie sequence; there was the singing, them circling the microphone, Archie’s eyes staring soulfully into her own, longing looks darting to his lips and then back up to meet his gaze. That was the moment. She shouldn’t have caught his eye. It was the way he swung his guitar to the side of him, already sure of his actions. His decision already made. But then, she had pushed the microphone away from herself at the same time he moved in, hadn’t she? And then they had sort of just… collided.
There was no hesitation, but there had been fireworks, and a pulsing in the pit of her stomach, a swarm of butterflies. That kiss was nothing like the one they had shared in the music room. Admittedly, that one was simply staged.
She thinks back to that kiss. Something was already different, but she was in denial. That kiss, although wasn’t rehearsed, was supposed to be short and sweet; just enough to ensure Cheryl caught it on camera, but their lips stayed locked for a short while even after Cheryl had walked away.
“Just a few more minutes; just in case she comes back.” Archie had whispered against her lips. He had tasted like cherries, and her head was swimming.
In that moment, Betty made no move to pull away; she should have though, because she knew Cheryl.
Cheryl Bombshell Blossom would have been long gone causing trouble at the mere sight of them together in the music room. But being alone with Archie, lips against his, she felt the world disappear and it was just the two of them.
Her thoughts drifted to the fairy tale realm of what could have been; once upon a time it could have been that easy between them; as a couple of high school sweethearts, stealing moments in the music room between classes. It was what life could have been like before. Before the black hood, before the farm, before Jughead and Veronica…. But of course the kiss, the dating, it was just a façade, and it didn’t mean anything.
In his garage though, everything rushed to the surface, the kiss was years’ worth of skirting around feelings, years of brushing off the longing looks, and lingering touches.
Why was her heart trying to rehash the past? It was so stupid and so teen of her to have had a fight with Jughead and throw herself into Archie’s arms. She thought she was better than this. She WAS better than this. Archie did not have a claim on heart like before. At least, that is what she told herself as she emerged from the woods, to the entrance of the bunker. It was a battle she was ready to fight, but sure enough, deep down, she knew it was a battle that she would not win.
She took a deep breath as she lifted the hatch before climbing down into the darkness.
Her heart pounded furiously as her feet stepped off the ladder. She took in the candle lit entrance. If this was under any other circumstance, Betty would have been swept off her feet. Taking in the scene around her, she could hear a soft melody coming from round the corner; music was playing, and the candles were flickering, creating an amber glow. It looked so romantic.
Oh how it could have been so romantic.
But it wasn’t.
The bunker was tainted with bad memories, with so many lies, with all the secrecy and betrayal. And now she was adding to it by meeting Archie here. Behind their partners’ backs.
She shook off the eerie feeling that was settling in the pit of her stomach, the nerves evident in her voice as she called out to him. “Arch?”
As she rounded the corner, she took him in. He was sitting on the cot, guitar in hand, his fingers lightly strumming the melody that had caught her moments before. The candles flickered around him, his silhouette looking beautiful in the low light and she felt her breath caught.
He looked up as she came into view, the faintest of smiles on his lips. Scooting to the edge of the bed, he gently placed his dad’s guitar down on the mattress. He stood up awkwardly, wanting to reach out and hug her. She took a step back as he moved forward, so he stopped in his tracks.
“I er, didn’t think you would come.” He said, brushing his hand through his hair and letting it fall to his side.
Betty nodded, taking her lip between her teeth before looking around the bunker, trying to avoid his burning gaze. “I contemplated not coming, but we all deserve more than that.” She replied stiffly.
They were both silent for a moment, the awkwardness thick in the air. Betty frowned, she hated that whatever it was between them, was causing them to be so far away from the best friends they were.
“Can we just -”
“I want to -”
They both started and then stopped. Betty let out a little laugh and the infamous Archie smile that made her go weak, widened across his face. They both chuckled a little, before Betty sighed, long and low.
“You first.” She said with slight hesitation. She decided she would let him say his bit and then she would tell him straight. This needed to stop, whatever it was, because she loved Jughead. She wanted to be with Jughead, and of course, he wanted to be with Veronica. He had, after all, chosen her in the first place. Her mind shot back bitterly. She shook herself.
“I wrote you a song.” Archie blurted out suddenly, his voice breaking her out of her thoughts.
Betty’s eyes widened, flicking to him and then to the guitar, the thought of Jughead suddenly erased.
“And I’d really like you to hear it.” Archie continued, a little sheepish.
Betty didn’t realise she was holding her breath until she exhaled slowly. “You wrote me a song?” She stated in somewhat disbelief, her lips quivering with a small smile.
Archie smiled again, causing Betty’s heart to beat faster. He turned to pick up the guitar.
“Yeah, after–” he paused as if to think about what he was going to say next. She already knew what he was referring to. He wrote the song after the kiss.
“The other day, I just had a lot of thoughts going on inside my head and needed to write some stuff down, and well yeah, I worked pretty hard on it. I think you’ll like it. I hope you will.” He cleared his throat, his fingers strumming a chord. His hands looked like they were shaking. He was nervous.
Betty found some comfort in that as she moved toward the cot. She seated herself, hands in her lap, wide eyes staring up at him.
“I love all of your songs, Arch.” She whispered, watching as his eyes lit up. She swallowed, breaking eye contact and giving him a curt nod, signaling she was ready to listen.
Her stomach did a strange flip as Archie took a deep breath, and sank beside her, his long fingers pulling at the strings. A soft melody starting to play, shortly followed by his voice.
From the minute he opened his mouth, Betty was transfixed. She loved hearing him play, and listening to his voice bought a strong sense of nostalgia with it. She was the first person he told about his passion for music. She was the first person he ever shared his lyrics with. There was something so beautiful about being part of the firsts when it came to his music, and now, she had inspired him to write something new
She swallowed, watching him quietly, she fought another smile.
His voice had started off slow with a quiver, but it soon grew in confidence. Betty tried to hone in on the words, trying to ignore his knee which was bumping against hers as his foot jittered nervously on the ground. She tried to ignore the way his fingers plucked at the strings, her thoughts turning to wondering how they would feel traveling over her skin.
‘Cos you make me wanna be
Stronger than I am
His voice floated around her and she was struggling to comprehend what was happening. It was all very surreal. Archie Andrews was singing a song that he wrote about her.
And maybe I’m reaching,
misplacing a feeling
There is no way to know but to try
So give me tonight’
She swallowed hard as his voice carried the note on tonight. What did this all mean? She hadn’t prepared for this. She had been so ready to tell him that this was over. She had not expected him to sit there, strumming his dad’s guitar, playing a love ballad that he wrote for her, about her, about them. About wanting to try? No. This was all too much for her.
Four years ago, Betty would have been giddy with excitement. But this was all wrong. She felt guilty for wanting this. She stood abruptly, causing Archie to stop singing, startled.
“Betty, what is it? Do you not like it?” His eyes dimmed, and hurt was evident on his face as he moved his guitar away and stood up after her.
Betty’s eyes welled with tears, and her hands came up to grip her chest as she shook her head. “Arch.” she whispered meekly, her lips trembling. “No, I love it. That’s the problem.” She turned her head away. “You can’t be writing songs about me.” She breathed as he came up to stand in front of her.
She lifted her eyes up to meet his. He cupped her face in his hand. A single tear rolled from her eyelash onto her cheek. Archie could feel her shaky breath against the palm of his hand. Her lips slightly parted.
“We can’t do this.” She said, swallowing hard, her eyelids fluttering at his soft touch.
Archie’s thumb brushed against her skin, wiping the tear away. It caused Betty to shiver and a strange tightness tingled within her stomach. “We aren’t doing anything though. We’re just hanging out, right?” Archie whispered.
She felt his breath fan over her face. He was too close to her. She needed to pull away from him.
Naturally, she shifted closer.
“Archie, what are we doing?” She murmured; she could feel him everywhere. His thumb was still stroking her cheek; his other hand was slowly moving up her arm. She was so sure her own hands were by her side, but then she felt his T-shirt against her palm. Her hands pressed firmly to his hard chest. She swallowed, and then like a magnet, she was pulled into him. There was a shift in the air, and he was much closer to her than she realised. Their lips were a breath from each other’s.
“I don’t know, but it’s nice, right?” Archie whispered, and then somehow, her lips touched his, warm and soft, and so gentle. At the lightest brush of contact, she felt it. The fireworks; the multitude of colours lighting the night sky; it felt like home.
It was a tender kiss at first, hesitant, but he pressed into her with a little more force, her face still in his hands, and then she came undone. Her own hands moved swiftly. There was a rush of blood pulsing in her ears as her fingers worked to reeve up his T-shirt, trying to move the thin fabric over his head.
He let out a laugh as it got stuck because his hand was still against her cheek, and they were tangled.
There was no awkwardness to that laugh, it was light, breathless, totally Archie. It shouldn’t have made it so easy, but Betty instantly relaxed as Archie discarded his shirt quickly, and her eyes flashed wildly as she came face to face with his bare chest.
Her fingers crept up his abs, her nails raking slowly along his skin as she marveled at his toned stomach in the low light of the candles. A small smile tugged at her lips as she felt him shiver beneath her touch. She wanted to savior this. All of her inhibitions left her, as her heat hammered against her ribs. She didn’t have time to contemplate her next move as Archie’s fingers travelled down her arms before stopping at the hem of her T-shirt. His eyes bore into hers and she simply nodded under hooded eyes, giving him permission to remove it.
He pulled it over her head slowly, a stark contrast to her frantic attempt to rid him of his own shirt moments ago. Her skin erupted with goose bumps as he threw her t-shirt to the ground. She felt her cheeks flush as Archie’s eyes wandered over her, standing topless, in a pink lace bra in front of him. He had seen her many times before, in swimming costumes and bikinis at Sweetwater River, and at the poolside, but of course this was all new, this was way more intimate.
Subconsciously, her arms came around herself and she found herself looking down at her sneakers, not wanting to look at him, not wanting to speak.
She peeked up after a moment, and watched as he licked his lips, drinking in the sight of her. He reached out for her tentatively, and withdrew her arms from around herself so he could get a better look. His eyes softened as his gaze continued to move over her. The look was full of hunger but there was also a tenderness that she only ever saw in his eyes, when he was looking at her in a certain way.
She never quite knew what that look meant, but now, she thinks maybe, she understands.
“Betty.” Her name sounded thick in his throat as her eyes follow his tongue as it darts to wet his lips. It didn’t take long for him to pull her flush against him, her chest colliding with his with a soft bump. She reached for him, kissing him as if it was the last night on Earth.
For all they knew, after this, after whatever this was... it could very well be it for them. This was going to ruin everything, but for once Betty didn’t care. She was done playing the perfect girl next door, and always doing whatever it was everyone else wanted or expected from her.
For once she was going to do what it was, she wanted to do. She couldn’t think of the repercussions of this right now, all she could think about was Archie; his hands, his mouth, his tongue, how much she had wanted this for so long.
As if on cue to stop her mind straying, his lips left hers as he began to travel his mouth in open, light kisses down her neck. She arched into him. He pulled her forward, his lips never leaving her skin. The back of his legs hit the frame of the cot, and with his arms still around her, they stumbled backwards, landing haphazardly in a tangle of limbs. A bubble of laughter escaped their lips, before Betty swallowed, realising what cot they had fallen onto.
The very same cot her boyfriend used to sleep on. The very same cot her and Jughead had shared many nights together.
A wave of nausea hit her, but she swallowed hard, pushing it away. She wanted to be present with Archie in this moment, as his hands roamed over her back, sending electric pulses through her. Quite frankly, it was hard for her to think of anything else.
She leant forward, her lips on his stomach, moving up his chest to his collarbone in slow, soft kisses. His hands moved down to the back of her thighs, and she felt the mattress of the cot sink with their weight as a low moan escaped his throat and his fingers dug into her skin.
Her eyes flashed open at the sound – it was so different from the sounds she was used to; the sounds her boyfriend would make. The sick feeling was back, and she rose up sharply, straddling Archie, whose chest was heaving, his eyes glazed and heavy lidded.
“Arch –!” She hissed, coming back to herself, realising what was happening. She looked around wildly, wondering what to do next, whether she should jump off or flee completely.
Archie watched as her brow furrowed, and her mind ticked over, trying to catch up with her actions. He became almost desperate to pull her back into the moment.
Shaking his head, his fingers dug into the back of her legs, willing her to catch his eyes.
“No Betts don’t think – just be here, with me. Please?” His voice was hoarse and a little desperate, and she felt him shift underneath her. He knew just as much as her, how wrong this was, but he couldn’t deny it anymore.
One of his hands came to rest on the bottom of her back. His fingers were warm against her skin, and she ached for his hands to move over her entire body. How could they be doing this, why did this come so naturally to them? Why did it feel so right? So many questions were whirling around her mind, causing her to squeeze her eyes shut.
She knew she should leave. She knew they shouldn’t cross this line. They were already crossing too many lines, but this would be final. There would be no going back from this. There would be no ‘just tonight.’
Her mind flashed back to him singing.
And then she spoke without thinking. “This can’t be just for tonight.” She removed her hands from his chest, there were red marks imprinted on his skin from the pressure of her fingers. Of course it wouldn’t be just tonight. If they did this, there would be no quitting, she wouldn’t be able to stop it happening again.
Her hands came up to loosen her ponytail and Archie, caught in her gaze, simply stared at her as she slowly withdrew the hair tie, shaking her hair loose. It fanned behind her, and Archie let out a breath.
She was so beautiful. So perfect. She was simply Betty.
And she had always been his.
He squeezed his eyes shut, his hands coming to rest firmly on either side of her jean clad hips. Swallowing hard, he found his voice and uttered a question he didn’t really want her to answer.
“Do you want to stop?” His voice was timid and Betty wanted to laugh. She couldn’t remember a time Archie had been timid with her. But then again, she had never been in this particular situation with him before; this was all new from them, to be here, like this, with each other. But she couldn’t deny it anymore. She wanted this. She had wanted this for so long, and the timing was awful, and she was a terrible person, but she couldn’t hold back anymore.
Archie was a part of her, he lived inside of her and no matter how hard she tried she couldn’t erase him. Coming back to the present, she simply shook her head, her decision was made. She knew however, in that moment, in her heart, there had never really been a choice.
It had always been Archie.
She leaned forward to capture his lips, no need to speak. It was suddenly so clear. There was nobody else.
It would always be Archie.
The kiss deepened, with her lips parting to grant access for his tongue. His fingers found themselves tangled in the mess of her blonde waves, and she felt him fighting a smile against her lips as a little gasp escaped her.
Everything was wrong; the way that this was happening, the timing of it all, but she couldn’t deny how right it felt, how well their bodies fit together and just how in sync they were with each other; it was like a magnetic field drawing them to each other. It was inevitable that they would collide, it was inevitable that they would end up like this. Archie knew her in ways nobody else did, it was evident at his gentle touches and soft kisses. He was so aware of her and in awe of her. Her mind was screaming at her, but her heart was thumping so hard, she could feel it with every breath she took. But she thinks, maybe it was Archie's heart she was feeling, they were so close, so tangled up in each other.
They were after all, Betty and Archie.