Blind Love

Till Next Time

"Uh, look, Jug," Archie gingerly sat beside Jughead's bed, feet tapping on the ground nervously.

Jughead rolled his eyes. "Look, Archie, whatever you're gonna say just spit it out, okay? It's not like what you say will shock me anyway, with all that's been going on."

The redhead stayed tense before finally telling the news he had to deliver. "Uhm...I don't know how to tell you this...but, um, Betty wants a break."

Archie Andrews did not know what to expect. Maybe Jughead would jump out of bed in disbelief to find Betty, maybe Jughead would distant himself more, maybe Jughead would even cry? He did not know, but he certainly was not expecting him to smile.

"Uh, Jug, did you hear what I just said?" Archie asked in confusion.

"Of course! I may be severely injured, but my hearing's completely fine," Jughead scoffed.

"To be honest, a break would be the best solution for us now," Jughead turned solemn. "I don't want to keep hurting her by having her worrying about me every moment of the day. And yes, I know I've been so distant, but I don't think I can handle a relationship at least when Veronica's still unconscious."

"You and Veronica...got really close during the kidnap, eh?" Andrews tested the waters.

"Yeah, kind of hard not to when you're stuck with a person for that long a time."

"I see."

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"Betty wants a break."

Jughead informed Veronica. He, slouching on his wheelchair parked beside her bed,  was yawning from the long hours he was beside her. 

"I feel good, honestly, I don't feel able to be in a relationship now, I've got enough problems already, I don't want to drag her in all my crap. She doesn't deserve to deal with that on top of her own. I don't know when we're gonna get back together, or whether we are getting back together," Jughead rambled on through his sleepiness. "To be completely honest, I don't feel the way I used to feel when I see her. I don't look at her the way I used to. It's almost as if..."

Jughead trailed off in an abrupt realisation. Holy crap. The unspoken words floated around in his mind, haunting him. It's almost as if he's fallen out of love with Elizabeth Cooper. He's fallen out of love! But why and how? Jughead was puzzled and frustrated at this discovery.

"Anyway, I'm sorry I'm hurting her, but I hope she's happier now. I really hope she is," Jughead concluded quickly. " I'll come back tomorrow, the usual time, I have to go now, you know how the doctors freak when I stay up too late. Till next time."

Jughead made it a habit to never say 'goodbye' to Veronica, because 'goodbye' meant either one or both of them leaving without a promise to see each other again. He never wanted to say 'goodbye' to her, in fear she'd take that as permission to slip away in her deep sleep or as a sign that he was not coming back.

Besides, not that Jughead noticed, but Veronica also made it a habit to move her pinky finger at Jughead's 'till next time' as a promise to see him again tomorrow.

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Away from the hospital, FP was slaving away at the orders of the mysterious rising power that had snatched the Serpents at the price of Jughead. 

He hated doing illegal work, but if it meant saving his son, it had to be done. Right now, he was driving to deliver the barrels of drugs in the back of his truck to Greendale and a town a bit further than Greendale. He sighed as he drove past the friendly buildings to the sinister trees of the dark woods. Shady businesses were never done in plain sight.

Today's job was relatively easier. Yesterday, FP had to transport and dump corpses in the Greendale side of Sweetwater River. He was not surprised that he and the Serpents had to finish the dirty work of this new power.

Although FP did not know what the evil power's ultimate aim and goal was, he was sure that it did not wander far from wanting money.

Shaking his head, FP accelerated towards the abandoned barn and dropped off the drugs. He was smart enough to wear a hood and use a fake license to prevent a repeat of Penny Peabody threatening Jughead with the clip of him drug dealing. 

FP and the Serpents would lay low for now, while Jughead and Veronica healed, but after that? War and chaos was going to take place in Riverdale to overthrow the people who had made the children of Riverdale suffer. They better watch out. He was proud and surprised when Sweet Pea did not irrationally suggest to attack 'The Barbarians', as the Serpents had named the attackers. Being brash would do them no good. 

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'Till next time' was what Veronica's body was telling her mind. It simply refused to move, other than only responding to a forceful control of moving her fingers. Moving her fingers alone caused her a huge headache, as it required intense concentration and determination.

Veronica was extremely fed up with her current condition. She had finally realised that she was not dead, but probably in a vegetative state. Since Jughead had started talking to her daily, her mind was clearing and her hearing was improving. When he first came over, all she recognised was a faint murmuring of his voice, but could not hear the content. That alone was enough to give her mind a wake up call. The next few times he came, she tried her best to strain her brain and hearing to comprehend what he was saying. She succeeded in hearing a few words from his one-sided conversations with her. By the end of the second week, yes, Jughead would report what day it was to her, Veronica could catch what he was telling her, even though she would miss a few words sometimes. 

Although she could not respond, she learned a lot about Jughead. She had learned about his childhood, she had learned about his family, she had learned about the factors that had shaped his thoughts and personality. She would mentally smile when she heard Jughead laugh, then crumble a bit inside when she knew she could not laugh with Jughead.

She had to wake up. She had to wake up for Jughead, for her mother, for Archie and all her other friends. She would try harder. She had to wake up for herself.