"You can't always wear these grandma sweaters, Betty," Cheryl started, turning in her seat and looking at her best friend. "Don't you have more of a bar outfit?"

Betty frowned, shrugging. "I like my outfit," she mumbled and Cheryl groaned. "What's wrong with it?" she asked, chuckling.

"Only everything," Cheryl responded and Betty scoffed. "Betty, you are in jeans—and they don't even have rips—with a white t-shirt and a cardigan. Now Betty," she exaggerated, placing her hands on her friend's thighs. "Are we certain that this is the outfit you want to meet your future husband in?"

"Oh," Betty huffed, pushing Cheryl away. "Who said I'm going to meet my future husband?"

"I did," Cheryl joked. "Just now. And have you seen Grey's Anatomy? It happened there."

Betty rolled her eyes, standing. "I'm not changing. If I happen to meet my future husband—as if that would ever happen—wouldn't you rather have him meet me as myself? He would be looking at me like this for...ever."

"You know," Cheryl breathed, sighing. "You're right. But are you sure you want to meet him in that?"

Betty scoffed, giggling. She walked over to her closet and opened it. She sighed, crossing her arms as she whispered, "Go to town."

Cheryl squealed, clapping her hands. "Okay," she muttered. "Oh, holy pastels. Jesus Christ, Betty, seriously?"

"I teach little kids," she pouted, sitting down at the end of her bed. "I have to wear bright colors."

Cheryl huffed, crossing her arms over her chest and staring at the array of clothes in her closet. She reached forward, pulling out a slip dress she had hanging up. "This," she said, tossing the article of clothing to Betty. "Why have I never seen you wear this?"

"Because..." Betty winced, looking at it. "Isn't it a little much?"

"A little much?" Cheryl questioned, shaking her head. "No, no. This is amazing! Betty, you would look hot. And, I mean, you always look hot—duh! But that dress is hot."

"You just said hot too many times," she whispered and Cheryl scoffed. "You just... I bought it, like, forever ago but I don't know."

"You're going to look amazing! I promise," she added, offering a smile. "Your future husband would die over this."

"I am not looking for my future husband," Betty laughed, smoothing her dress once it was on. "I'm only going because you said that Toni said it's important for you to be there and you don't want to go alone."

Cheryl shrugged, mumbling, "You can look for a husband too."

They both laughed and Betty shook her head. "Sometimes, I can't believe you," she whispered, fixing her makeup in the mirror.

"You know," Cheryl said with a nod, watching Betty put on her lip gloss. "If I was a guy, I would totally swoon."

"How kind," Betty said dramatically, placing a hand over her heart. They both giggled. "So, where are we going?" Betty asked, tucking hair behind her ear.

"The Whyte Wyrm," Cheryl began explaining, looking through Betty's makeup. "We've been there, like, a handful of times at least. Or maybe I've been there... I don't know. We're going to see Toni's band and they're very good, honestly. Totally thought they would suck because, well, they're a band trying to flourish in New York City and also somehow want to be the next Led Zeppelin but, like, with a girl."

"I don't know if you mean that because they have four members or because they only play their music," Betty whispered as she left her room.

"I mean it because they have four members... I think." Cheryl sighed, shaking her head. "They play their music occasionally, but they also have their own stuff. But, uh, yeah. They're good, swell. Toni told me they all went to high school together and then just happened to all go to the same college."

"How do you 'happen' to go to the same college?" Betty asked incredulously.

"I don't know. I asked the same thing and she just gave me that look and then... well, I'm not telling you that part," Betty rolled her eyes and Cheryl laughed. "But, nonetheless, thank you for coming with me. It's so weird going to these things alone and just... sitting in their room."

"We go to their dressing room?" Betty asked, eyes wide. "No, no, no. Cher, that's weird."

"It's not weird," Cheryl laughed, closing Betty's apartment door and threading her arm through Betty's. "It's just kind of awkward. But Toni and I mostly stay on our own side while the three guys act like idiots on the other."

"Idiots?" Betty copied. "What do you mean idiots?"

Cheryl sighed, shaking her head. "You'll see."

"Why are there so many people here?" Betty shouted over the music that was playing over the speakers. Cheryl shrugged, placing their drinks on the table and sitting down next to Betty. "Are they seriously that good or is it because it's Friday?"

"Mm," Cheryl hummed, sipping from her martini. "I would say it's half-and-half. They're good and lots of people come when they play, but it's also Friday and people are coming to forget what they did all week long."

Betty hummed lightly, stirring her drink. "When do they come on?" she asked, wiping salt off of the rim of her glass and brushing it away on a napkin.

"I'm not sure," Cheryl said and Betty rested her chin in her hand. "I wasn't really listening to Toni when she was talking about it."

"Yuck," Betty exclaimed, frowning. "You and that love haze. Ugh, it's revolting."

"It's revolting," Cheryl mocked, rolling her eyes. "You only say that because you refuse to meet anyone."

"I don't have time," she huffed. "I have to attempt to read a six-year-old's chicken scratch—which is very cute so I really shouldn't complain. But do you want to try and do that?" Cheryl sighed, sipping from her drink. "Yeah, go all silent." They both laughed and the music went silent, people cheering. "So they are popular," Betty muttered, straightening in her seat to see over people's heads.

Cheryl squealed when she noticed they were onstage, clapping her hands. "Do you see her?" she whispered to Betty, her grin wide as she watched Toni adjust her microphone and give the guy at the drums a glare. He was dying of laughter, clutching his sides. "Isn't she just adorable?"

"Is that your skirt?" Betty asked, giving Cheryl a questioning look.

"Oh, that bitch," she breathed and Betty bit back a laugh. "She is so explaining that to me when she's done."

"Oh, yes," Betty mumbled. "Because you'll stay mad at her for that long." Cheryl frowned and Betty giggled. "Who are they?" Betty asked.

"I have no clue," Cheryl said, leaning closer to Betty. "I've never really officially met them. I've only seen them like one time and I've only been in the dressing room once."

"Cheryl!" Betty shouted and Cheryl winced. "You made it seem like you knew these people and now you're telling me you don't even know their names?"

Cheryl huffed, waving her hand. "Calm down, they seem like nice people."

"Seem," Betty emphasized. "Seem!" she yelled.

"Hey," the lead guy chuckled over the microphone. He was tall and he had a guitar strapped across him. "How is everybody tonight?" Betty rolled her eyes at the overused opening, sipping from her drink while everyone else whooped and shouted loudly. "Okay, well, we don't have any announcements tonight so let's get into this show, shall we?"

Everyone screamed and Betty straightened in her seat. "She's going to do amazing!" Cheryl exclaimed and Betty laughed, shaking her head.

"Thank you, have a good night!" the lead member said through the mic. Everyone went crazy and Cheryl was out of her seat in a heartbeat.

She grabbed Betty's arm, giving it a tug. "Come on!" she shouted. "I have to go see Toni!"

Betty huffed, grabbing her drink and bag in one hand. "You're moving too fast," she whined, trying to squeeze through people. As they gave her dirty looks she mumbled, "I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry."

"Okay," Cheryl sighed, turning towards Betty when they got to a dark hall. She fluffed her hair, posing and smiling. "How do I look?"

"Like Cheryl," Betty answered, sipping from her drink. Cheryl frowned and she chuckled. "Okay, okay. You look great. Now, go see your girlfriend. I bet she doesn't even care what you look like."

Cheryl sighed, nodding. "Okay," she whispered, knocking on the door. Toni opened it and they gave each other a smile before they were hugging like they hadn't seen each other in years.

When they pulled apart Cheryl squealed. "You sounded so good!" she shouted, her ears still ringing from the speakers. "I'm so proud of you! I swear, you get more and more amazing every night—and that goes for all of you," she added over Toni's shoulder, looking back to her with a grin. "I don't even know how you can play the guitar and sing like that at the same time."

"Trust me," Toni mumbled. "It's not easy." Cheryl huffed, brushing past Toni and into the room. "Hi, Betty." Toni said with a smile.

"Hi," Betty breathed. "You did really good. I don't... you all are amazing."

"Thank you," Toni chuckled. "Come in, you can sit by Cher." Betty nodded, holding her glass with both hands.

She stepped into the room and her eyes locked with one of the guys—the drummer, she could tell by the way he laughed. He smirked when she stared longer than she should have, looking back to the two other guys.

"That's Jughead," Toni whispered, leaning towards Betty.

Betty inhaled sharply, uttering, "What?"

"The guy you're staring at," Toni started. "That's Jughead. He's our drummer. He doesn't sing, he refuses to sing—publicly, and he's the one who makes fun of all of us. He smokes like a chimney, only wears silver jewelry, and he will throw a fit if you force him to wear anything other than his black high top converses or black Doc Martens."

"Oh," Betty chuckled. "I... he was just in my, um, my-my eyeline."

"He wasn't," Toni stated. "But... if it helps you sleep at night."

Betty sighed, murmuring, "You are just like Cheryl." Toni laughed and grinned, moving over to Cheryl.

She looked back over to Jughead and he moved his eyes up from the guy on the floor. He ran his eyes over her, inhaling deeply before he reached for the cigarettes on the side table beside him. He lit it, holding her gaze as he took a drag.

She let out a breath when she glanced away, moving over to Cheryl and Toni hurriedly. They burst into fits of laughter and Betty huffed. "Shut up," she gritted out, only causing them to laugh harder.

"I do not like him!" Betty grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest as she walked in front of Cheryl and Toni. "I saw him for, what, three minutes? You can't like someone based on that! You have to know their personality, their background, the shit they've done—you can't base how you feel about someone off of their looks!"

"Chill out," Cheryl mumbled. "Betty, you can totally like someone based on their looks. If people didn't do that, literally no one would be with anybody. You have to find someone attractive to know you want to know more about them—romantically and, well, maybe sexually."

"Okay, I am not attracted to him," she argued. "He-He-He... Jesus Christ, I don't know! But I do know that I do not like him!" she shouted and Cheryl sighed.

"Oh," she sighed, letting go of Toni and gripping Betty's shoulders. "I know, it's hard to admit you're attracted to men when women are right there." Betty scoffed and Cheryl smiled. "I have to say that every time you throw a fit over a guy. But you can admit you find him attractive. You're not going to die and it doesn't mean you have to date him. It just means you find him hot and... stuff."

"I don't," she challenged.

"You do," Cheryl responded. "And that's okay. He plays drums in a band. It's either you take him, or someone else will and you'll never have him. You have heard "Sk8er Boi", right?"

Betty gave her an unimpressed look, scoffing. "I don't want him," she whined, though her tone was unconvincing. "I don't want him, I don't know him. He's a guy in Toni's band."

"I don't think Jug's going to be taken off the market any time soon," Toni interrupted. "He might hook up with a few people but that's it."

"A few people?" Betty muttered.

"Like one or two a month at most. He's a guy," Toni huffed. "He's going to do shit. He likes sex... I assume. I don't talk to him about that stuff, it's weird."

"I don't get why we're even vaguely talking about his sex life," Betty whispered, stepping back towards her apartment building.

Toni sighed and Cheryl patted Betty's shoulder. "How about this: if you see him again, you have to at least have a conversation with him." Betty huffed, nodding with a frown. "Good. Now, I love you and you go upstairs and go straight to bed. You have lots of chicken scratch to read tomorrow."

"Goodnight to you too," Betty said. Cheryl laughed, waving to her as she skipped off down the sidewalk with Toni's hand in hers.

~

Jughead chuckled, nodding as he took the slip of paper along with his card. "Thanks," he forced, giving the way-too-young girl a smile. There was no way she wasn't a teenager still, and if she wasn't, he was suddenly 70.

He tossed the slip into the trash without looking at it, pulling out his cigarettes as he stepped out the door. He fished in his pocket for a moment, finding his lighter. He cupped the front of his cigarette, flickering it and lighting the cigarette.

A blonde blur ran by before it collided with his shoulder, jolting both of them. It made the blur stumble a little and she checked the ends of her ponytail quickly.

"Oh my god," she started in a flurry, pulling out her earphones. "I am so... oh my god."

He narrowed his eyes, taking a drag from his cigarette. "What?" he asked with a chuckle. "I didn't burn you, did I?"

"No!" she answered quickly, chuckling. "Not-Not-Not at all. Um, it's just, um..."

"You're the blonde who, uh, Toni's girlfriend's..." He winced, not being able to finish the sentence.

Betty hummed, nodding. "Yeah, that's me. You were... I don't really like rock music like, um, at all. But-But you guys did amazing. I mean, I-I don't know a lot..." She trailed off as he smirked and took a drag from his cigarette, smoothing her hands over her ponytail. She sighed, smoothing her hands over her stomach next and cringing when she realized she only had a sports bra on. "I really should, um, finish my run. I, uh, have a lot... to get done when I get home."

"Yeah, that's fine. I understand," he said with a nod. "I got lots of drum playing to do."

She giggled, sucking her teeth for a moment. "Um, I guess I'll, uh... see you around. Maybe I'll... come back next week? I'm not sure how often you guys do shows."

"Whenever we can," he chuckled, taking another drag from his cigarette. "Don't slam into anyone else, especially if they're lighting a cigarette."

She laughed, twisting her hands. "Yeah, I should really pay attention to where I'm going. I'm sorry for doing that," she whispered.

"You're okay, it happens. But you're okay?" he asked, concern laced through his voice.

"Yeah," she responded. "My hair isn't on fire, no burns or anything on my shoulder. I'm okay," she mumbled.

He nodded, clearing his throat. "Okay, I'll-I'll let you go. Have a... fun rest of your run."

She giggled, placing her earphones back in her ears. "Have fun with whatever you're doing too," she said over her shoulder with a bright grin, bouncing on her feet before she ran off. He chuckled, taking a drag from his cigarette as she hurried off.

~

"I don't want to see him," Betty said as she sank down into her couch. "I just want to... say hi." Toni gave Cheryl a knowing look. "I ran into him—literally—while jogging this morning and he seems really nice. I can always use friends... rock band friends."

"Our next show is on Tuesday if you want to come," Toni stated, placing her arm under her head in Cheryl's lap. "Or you could always come hang out before the show."

"I can't drink on a work night," Betty whined. "I don't let myself. If I do, I'm not a good example for my kids."

"You don't have to drink," Toni responded and Betty furrowed her brows. "Just because we play at a bar, doesn't mean you have to drink. We don't. We can, but we typically don't. And before the show, we just hang out in the dressing room anyway."

"Do you think he would think it's weird?" Betty asked, pulling her knees up to her chest and resting her cheek on them. "I'm never there, now suddenly I am. He's going to know something's up at some point."

"Eh, let him. You're sweet, you're nice. We could use that," Toni said, threading her fingers through Cheryl's when she finished playing with her hair.

Betty sighed, hugging her knees. "You two are too in love, it's making me sick." They laughed, grinning at each other.

~

Betty met Cheryl at the door of the bar and she sighed. "Oh, Betty," she sighed, fluffing her friend's hair. "Who taught you how to flirt?"

"I'm not here to flirt," she stated, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm here to... be here. And I came straight from work, I had a long day. We made these little leaves-"

"Betty," Cheryl said, cutting her off. "I love you, but you are wasting your breath explaining the project to me. You can explain it for hours and even show it to me, and I still won't understand what you did or what you're saying."

"Understandable," Betty mumbled and they both nodded. "But I didn't have time to change when I got home. I only had time to brush my teeth and freshen up. I couldn't do a whole outfit change like I should have."

"You look cute," Cheryl told her with a small smile. "And you look cute more than you look sexy. And I'm sure there's times where you are sexy, but I'll let you decide when that becomes your best interest. As much as I love pissing you off by making you put on hot outfits, I think I have to let you take this one on your own."

"Take this one on my own?" Betty uttered as they moved through the bar to their dressing room. "What does that mean?" she asked.

"Okay, well, all the other guys you went after were just terrible fiends and I knew that—though you never listened." Betty agreed with a wince. "But I have a good feeling about him. Toni says he's super nice and he really cares about people. And all that stuff she said about him sleeping around wasn't true. Toni said it to scare you."

"Why would she want to scare me?" Betty asked incredulously.

"Because she's 5'2" and gets mocked all day. You're the only one who she can scare." Betty frowned and Cheryl giggled. "Okay, so. We're going to go in there and you're going to talk to him."

Betty laughed, shaking her head. "That is not happening," she scoffed. "He's surrounded by two guys and when guys smell that a girl likes one of their friends, the girl becomes the laughing stalk of their group. I don't want to go through that, high school was bad enough!"

"Oh, Archie was never good enough for you anyway. That guy was a total buffoon." Cheryl muttered with a shrug, checking her nails. "But Betty," she started again, brushing her hair off her face. "If you never say a word to him, how will you get to know him like you want to?"