"You kissed? Finally?" Cheryl exclaimed and Betty nodded. "Oh my god!"

Betty giggled, ducking her head slightly before she confessed, "I am not used to this-this dating thing."

"You'll get used to it soon," Cheryl explained. "Just give it time. Dating someone new is always a little... shocking so to speak, you know? Not being used to it is normal." Betty sighed, looking down at her coffee. "So, like, how serious was it?" Betty laughed and shrugged. "Tell me!"

"It was... serious," she giggled. "I don't really... it wasn't going anywhere, if that's what you're asking. I'm not ready for something like that yet."

"Why?" Cheryl asked, turning her cup of coffee in her hands.

Betty sighed, shrugging as she traced the rim of her own cup. "I don't know," she breathed. "I'm not like you, I don't see sex as another thing people do. It's emotional and... I have to be mentally prepared for something like that. I can't just jump into it. I've tried to, but it never works out well. Just look at my exes."

"That makes sense. Still totally think you should jump his bones though," Cheryl muttered into her cup.

Betty laughed, shaking her head. "You are relentless," she whispered. "Are you sure they're done with practice? We're not interrupting? Do you know how many times I've pulled him out of practice in the past, like, two months?"

"Oh, trust me," Cheryl sighed. "I know. Toni told me all about it."

"So they're done?"

"They are done-done. You can jump his bones," she said with a wiggle of her brows.

"I am not going to jump his bones!" Betty huffed with a smack to her friend's arm. "God, you're a pain!"

"You love me," Cheryl said in a sing-song. "You'd be lost without me." Betty rolled her eyes, pushing open the door to the apartment building. "So, have you two hung out or anything since your kiss?"

"No," she sighed. "We've texted and talked on the phone, but we haven't seen each other. We've been busy with our own stuff—me with work, him with the band and work. I guess they're working on new stuff?"

"That's what Toni said," Cheryl murmured, following Betty down the hall. "I haven't heard it yet, she's only talked about it."

"Jug says he really likes it," Betty responded, stopping in front of the door. "I feel like they're not done."

"If they're not done," Cheryl said, knocking on the door. "Then we sit and listen."

Betty sighed, straightening when Fangs opened the door. "You know, I really don't think it's fair that you two are dating them," he started and they both rolled their eyes. "Like, do you see Jughead? I am so much better looking!"

Jughead gave Betty a smile over Fangs shoulder and she bit her lip.

"It's because I'm short, isn't it?" Fangs continued and Betty raised her brows. "That's mean. You cannot not date someone because they're short."

"Fangs," Betty sighed. "I'm sure you're a great guy and I would be lucky to have you, but I don't want you. I want Jughead and you're kinda blocking him so move... please."

He huffed, stepping aside. Jughead gave her a grin and she skipped over to him. "Cute dress," he commented when she was close to him. "Tiny." She narrowed her eyes at him and he chuckled. "Do I have to ask-"

"Just kiss me," she giggled with a smile. He smirked, leaning down and kissing her quickly. "I can get used to that," she breathed and he laughed. "This is for you," she said after a moment, holding out the other cup of coffee she had. "It has two sugars and one cream because that's what you drank when I was drunk and fell asleep on your couch-"

"You got it right, Betts," he assured and she let out a deep breath.

"I'd be a pretty crappy girlfriend if I didn't know your coffee order."

"No," he disagreed, setting his cup down as he sat on the couch. "Not really." She shrugged, sitting next to him. He cleared his throat, looking down at his hands as he said, "Um, I go to my dads for Thanksgiving. I leave tomorrow and I'll be back Saturday."

"Oh," she breathed, looking down at her lap.

"I-I probably should have said something sooner," he sighed. "I just thought of it now. I really... I don't want to go, I would much rather stay home."

"Why do you leave so early?"

"I leave a day before Thanksgiving, Betty," he chuckled and she groaned. "And I do it to be nice. He's my dad, I can't just... leave him. So I stay with him and I hang out with him. That's what I do."

"Is he okay?" Betty asked softly, her brows furrowed.

He sighed, shaking his head. "Not really, no. He, uh... he has end-stage liver disease." She gasped, biting her lip. "He's okay for now. He has hospice and they take good care of him. My sister and I, we go and sit with him on holidays so he's not alone."

"Is he dying?" she said under her breath.

"Yeah," Jughead answered and she shuddered. "He's been dying for a while though, they just can't really do anything anymore. He's still alive though, he's okay-ish. He's not 100%, but he still has enough in him to be comfortable and content most of the time."

She hugged his arm, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry you have to go through that," she whispered.

"It's okay," he mumbled. "You learn to live with it."

"Does it run in the family?" she asked and he winced.

"No," he answered quickly. "No, this is 'cause of his drinking. He just... he drank his liver away. They wouldn't put him on the transplant list and Jelly and I... we never checked if we were matches because... we didn't know if he'd want a new liver, you know?"

"I want to meet him, is that weird?" she asked, glancing up at him.

"Um, I don't know. I don't think so." She huffed and he smirked. "I promised Sweet Pea I'd stay awhile and help him work out a kink in the music." She whined and he chuckled. "I'll call you later, calm down." He kissed her quickly, smirking. "I could get used to that, too."

She groaned and he laughed. "Rude!" she shouted and he winked as he turned the corner.

"You can stay, you know," Fangs said with a raise of his brows.

Betty inhaled sharply, shaking her head. "Um, I think I'm okay."

She giggled, biting her cheek.

~

Betty knocked on Jughead's door and he answered quickly. She huffed, pointing out, "You are always shirtless."

"I am not always shirtless," he said after spitting into the bathroom sink and rinsing his mouth. "Why would I get my shirt wet if I don't have to put it on until my hair stops dripping?"

"Whatever you say," she sighed and he chuckled when she smirked. He kissed her quickly when he walked past her and she chewed her lip. "We do that now?" she asked.

He furrowed his brows, giving her a confused look over his shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"Those little kisses," she whispered. "Like they're... like they're a habit. We do those?"

"Yeah, I guess so," he mumbled and she ducked her head as she blushed. "That's easily becoming one of the cutest things you do."

She glared at him and he smirked. "Where's Jinx?" she asked after a minute.

"On my bed," he answered and she twisted her lips.

"Can I go see him?"

"Yeah, you don't have to ask."

She nodded, stepping into his room and grinning. She stepped over to the bed quietly, sitting down next to Jinx and stroking his back. "Who's watching him while you're gone?" she asked, laying down next to Jinx and giggling when he licked her nose.

"Sweet Pea is," Jughead responded as he pulled on a shirt. "I would ask you but-"

"I'm going to my moms tomorrow," she sighed. "I would love to, but I can't so it's best you didn't ask."

"I thought you had a bad relationship with your mom," he muttered, stepping over to the bed and sitting down on the other side of Jinx.

She groaned, huffing. "I do but it's Thanksgiving. It's easier to just pretend for a day and a morning than getting yelled at for hours on end because I didn't show."

"I guess that does sound a little better," he murmured, laying down and facing her. "I feel like I shouldn't be laying right here."

"Why?" she giggled, tucking her hands under her head. "It's your bed, I think I'm the one who shouldn't be laying here."

"I like you laying in my bed," he whispered.

She laughed, looking up at the ceiling. "Get your head out of the gutter!"

"Your head is the one in the gutter," he laughed. "You made it dirty."

"I did not make it dirty," she scoffed and Jinx left as she moved closer to him.

"Yes, you did!" he exclaimed, both of them laughing. "You made it dirty as soon as you said that my head was in the gutter. You're assuming that I said I like you in bed because of sexual reasons when really, I meant it completely platonically."

"Who just tells someone they like them in their bed if they don't mean it sexually?" she huffed and he narrowed his eyes.

"You just have a dirty, dirty mind," he mumbled and she laughed.

"No, I don't!" she squealed when he started to tickle her, giggling and shoving him away. "Stop it," she half panted, half laughed, and he stopped, resting above her. They stared into each other's eyes until she shoved him away, standing quickly. "Don't give me that look, Jughead."

"I wasn't giving you a look," he protested.

"You were," she sighed. "You don't think you were, but-but-but you were. You can't give me looks, not-not yet."

"Do you have a fear of intimacy?" he questioned and she gave him an angered look. "I'm just asking."

"I don't..." She sighed, looking down at her hands. "I don't have intimacy issues, I just... you never know. I just like going slow. I'd rather have a relationship built... I've already explained this. I don't have intimacy issues, I just like taking things slow."

"Okay," he whispered and she let out a deep breath. "That's all I wanted to know."

"I-I like you, Jug," she mumbled, her eyes following him as he stood up. "I do. And-And I know that it's... it's probably annoying. I-I..." She let out a deep breath and he tucked hair behind her ear as she looked down at her hands. "I want to, I do—ph-physically I want to," she added quickly, looking back up at him. "But mentally... I'm not ready. Sex is... it's not just sex—not-not to... to me, not anymore. I-I tried it—no attachments, no emotion, just-just sex. It didn't work. I-I didn't work. I... I can't just have sex."

"That's okay," he assured, cupping her cheeks. "You don't have to explain to me over and over why you're not ready. I get it, you have your reasons. That's fine, I'm not... I'm not with you for sex. I'm with you because I want to be with you, understand?" She nodded and he kissed her forehead.

"Can-Can I have one of your sweatshirts? Or shirts or... both?" she asked, turning towards him when he paused at his closet.

"You're gonna miss me that much while I'm gone for four days?" he joked and she swallowed thickly. "Okay, then. Both?" he questioned with a grin and she nodded enthusiastically.

He smirked, pulling a sweatshirt and t-shirt out of his closet. "Thank you," she breathed, squeezing them in her hands and bringing them up to her nose quickly. "They smell like you," she mumbled and he felt his heart explode.

"Is that why you wanted them?" he asked, trying to keep his cool on the outside. She nodded, holding them closer to her. He smiled, nodding. "Okay, then." She pulled on the sweatshirt before standing, fixing her hair. He stepped over to her and nodded, squeezing her shoulders. "A little big but I don't think it's anything you can't handle."

She giggled, picking his shirt up off the bed. "I'm hungry," she mumbled, kissing him quickly.

"Is that you telling me to hurry up nicely?" he questioned and she shrugged as she walked out of his room. He snickered, shaking his head as he pulled a sweatshirt out of his closet and followed her steps out of his room.

"Wait, so what do you do while you're at your dads?" Betty asked, crossing her hands on the table.

"Well," he started, resting his chin on his fists. "When I get there I'll probably go see him and maybe do something with my sister. On Thanksgiving they usually do dinner and my dad gets pretty excited about it. We never did Thanksgiving before he came here. Then Friday I just take a day to process how bad his condition is and say goodbye then I leave that night."

"You're not alone the whole time, are you?" Her eyes were pained. She may not have the best relationship with her mom, but it would kill her to see her mother like that.

He shook his head. "No," he answered, sighing. "My sister stays with me. Like I said, she'll come tomorrow and she'll drive back to Ohio Thanksgiving night and I stay another night. I'll be fine, I promise."

"I feel bad," she murmured. "I feel like I take my mom for granted."

He sighed, wiping a hand over his face. "Betty, he's not the best guy in the world, he... he had this coming. Yeah, it's-it's sad and I don't wish it on him. If I could take everything he feels away, I would because he's my dad. But he did this to himself, I'm serious."

She watched him for a moment, nodding. "You can call me whenever," she stated with a pointed look. "I mean it. If you need someone to talk to, or you're bored, or you can't sleep, call me. Okay?"

He nodded, chuckling. "Okay, I promise I will."

"I'm serious," she giggled.

"I am too," he responded and she huffed. "I'll call you, or text you, I swear. I don't want to interrupt your Thanksgiving-"

"Oh, no," she cut in. "You can interrupt whenever you see fit. Please."

He laughed, scoffing. "You-You mean that?"

"I mean it," she mumbled with a straight face. "I mean it."

Betty twisted her lips when she saw the train approach, looking over at Jughead. "This is where we say goodbye," she whispered and he laughed. "That was a little melodramatic, I know."

"You got this," he said, pulling on the hood of her sweatshirt. "And you have my shirt. I think you'll survive a few days."

"I know it's probably too early to say something like this, but it's going to be weird not having you here. Like, in the same city." He furrowed his brows and she sighed. "It's a little hard to explain. When you're here, I know you're close and I can, like, call you if... if the sky falls. But you're going to be in New Jersey and that's all the way across the water, so I... can't, you know?"

He gripped her shoulders, meeting her gaze. "If the sky happens to fall, I better be the first number you dial because I will be here to witness it with you." She bit her lip, ducking her head. "I'm going to hug you now," he stated, pulling her into him.

She wrapped her arms around him and rested her cheek against his chest, closing her eyes and squeezing. He placed a kiss on the top of her head, placing another on her lips when she craned her head back.

"The day I get back, come to our show. Afterwards we can do whatever you want," he started, brushing hair off of her forehead. "You can choose."

"I want to watch a movie." She gasped, tapping his shoulder. "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving! Please? Oh, we have to watch it, Jug!"

"Then we'll watch it," he promised and she grinned. "I have to go," he sighed, kissing her quickly. "I'll text you when I get there."

"I'll be waiting," she stated, linking her hands behind her back.

She watched him as he got onto the train, waving back to him as the train started to leave the station. When it was gone and out of her sight, she turned with a sigh, holding his shirt to her chest.

~

Betty set her laptop on the floor in front of her, turning her head towards Cheryl as she walked into the living room. "Tequila," she said, holding out the bottle and two shot glasses. "Who the hell is that?" she asked, squinting at the screen.

"Cher," Betty sighed and Cheryl looked at her with furrowed brows.

"Glasses?" she questioned and Betty shrugged. "Jughead," she started and he raised his brows, snuffing out his cigarette. "How long have you had those and why does no one know about them?"

"Contacts," he answered, moving over to the bed and sitting down.

"You wear contacts?" Betty and Cheryl asked in unison, giving each other quick questioning glances.

"You never said anything," Betty inquired and he nodded. "Jughead!"

"What?" he laughed, smirking. "It's not really dire information."

"What if something happened and your eyes rolled into the back of your head and your contacts got stuck?" Betty asked, giving him a stern look.

He sighed, clicking his tongue. "I think anything that would make me do that would kill me in the process."

She huffed, downing the shot Cheryl handed her. "Glasses," she muttered. "I cannot believe I didn't know you wore glasses! You didn't have them on when I stayed the night that night."

"You stayed the night at his place?" Cheryl asked with wide eyes.

"I was drunk," Betty sighed, waving her off.

"I woke up before you," he explained and she snarled. "I already had my contacts in."

"I want to choke you," she murmured and he laughed.

"You can go ahead and try," he commented and she rolled her eyes. "And before you say anything Cheryl, the band and Toni both know."

"You're so mean," Betty whispered and he grinned, biting back a laugh. "Stop!" she laughed and he threw his head back as his laugh bursted out of him.