Jughead Jones III

It’s almost as if he could read her mind all the way from Elm Street because she gets a notification from him. That’s the first time he’s reached out since they parted ways at the Andrews’ home. Y/N looks at the time before opening the text - 2 AM - realizing Jug probably waited until Archie was asleep before talking to her.

From: Jughead

I owe you an explanation. 

From: Y/N

I don’t owe me anything. But I’d certainly appreciate it...

From: Jughead

I’m sorry. I never meant to keep anything from you. 

From: Y/N

You know that’s not what I care about. I just hate knowing none of us were worth your trust on the moment you needed the most.

From: Jughead

That’s not it. I was... ashamed. Living alone was my choice and I had to deal with the consequences. It’s not as if I couldn’t budge and go back to my dad’s.

From: Y/N

I understand. But you have to promise you won’t keep anything else from me, Juggie. I care too much about you to find out that I could’ve helped you if only you had said something. 

From: Jughead

I promise. I really care about you too. Good night, Y/N/N. 

From: Y/N

Good night, Juggie. I’ll sleep better knowing you’ll be sleeping in a real house.

From: Jughead

It’s not a real bed, though. LOL

Y/N laughs, for the first time in hours. She rests her phone down on the desk and can finally finish her quiz before going to sleep. Although her thoughts still drift to him saying he also cares about her, that makes her giggly and warm. 

Jughead is waiting outside of Y/N’s classroom before lunch break. He keeps glancing at the window to check if they’re being released - honor students stay until the last second, though. She hides a smile with her book so the teacher won’t notice it. Y/N thought best to leave everything that happened the previous day behind them, for in the end what truly matter is that Juggie is safe. Once the bell rings, Jug walks into her class with a wide smile. “I missed you.” He helps her put some books inside her bag. “I missed you too.” She waits until it’s just them in the room to stand up and kiss his cheek. Neither of them is a big fan of PDA.

They walk in the students lounge together. The rest of the group is already there, talking about Polly. Jughead sits next to Y/N in the couch, though, not as close as when it’s just the two of them. Both silently listen, since they arrived mid conversation. “What if my mom and I were to host a baby shower?“, Veronica suggests directly to Betty. Y/N gathers that they found her sister and that she’s most likely staying at the Pembrooke to avoid both her family and the Blossoms. 

Ronnie continues trying to persuade Betty into a baby shower. Y/N thinks it’s a good idea to ease the civil war between the two families. Having them meet in neutral ground, hopefully - highly unlikely, though - could help them work through their differences, so she back up the raven-haired girl. “See. Y/N/N will help.”, Veronica continues her pleads. “Oh... I’m expected to come?” Given her bumpy history with Betty, she’s not sure. Y/N isn’t big on girly things either way - she was just trying to help Polly. Considering that the pregnant girl has just lost the love of her life, she needs some cheering up. “Yes.”, Veronica answers before Betty could. Y/N could tell she was gonna make an excuse like it should be family only. “Only if Jughead comes.” She thinks at least having Jug there will make Bett’s dislike for her more tolerable. “The more the merrier.” Betty genuinely smiles at that and it makes Y/N uncomfortable. “I don’t have to come.” He tries to get away from it and Y/N doesn’t blame him. They all know a baby shower is the last thing Jughead would want to do. “You’re Y/N/N’s boyfriend. You have to come.” The couple glance at each other awkwardly. Y/N would love nothing more than to call him that, but they haven’t properly talked about it still. “Oh, my God, you guys, relax. It's just a word that starts with the letter "B”.”, Ronnie states. “Plus we can use a strong set of arms to hang stuff up.”, she adds, before taking another sip of her drink. “I guess were having a baby shower, then.”, Betty says through a smile before her mother walks in and drags her and Veronica out of the lounge. 

Jughead’s point of view

From: Archie

Dad lost his crew to the Blossoms

I’m gathering some of the guys from the team to help him out

Kevin is in as well. How about you, Jug?

Jughead takes a moment to appreciate the irony in what Arch is asking of him. He’s sure that it didn’t cross the ginger’s mind. No matter his feelings towards the Drive-In, Mr. Andrews took him in when he could barely support his own child, so Jug will never deny him help.

From: Jughead

I’m in

From: Archie

Meet us outside the construction site in 10

He locks his phone and lowers the screen of his laptop, looking directly at his girlfriend - yes, they finally had that conversation, right before Jug started writing his novel and Y/N continued a book - across form him in a Pop’s booth, deep in a mystery story. Juggie marvels at that beautiful girl while stashing his laptop in his messenger bag, a part of him thankful that there’s a murder to investigate, otherwise who knows if he would ever have the chance to be Y/N/N’s boyfriend. She finishes the page she was on and places a marker in the middle before closing the book. “What?” Y/N chuckles quietly at the beanie-clad boy staring at her. He just smiles and shakes his head assuring her it’s nothing. “I have to go help Archie at the construction site.” He gets up from his seat and sits at the edge of her side of the booth. “Tearing down the Drive-In?” Her voice has a hint of mockery in it. “Picking up with has already been demolished, I assume.” He notices her widening her eyes in concern. “It’s fine.”, Jug reassures her before placing a quick kiss on her lips - not much on PDA - and exiting the diner. 

At what used to be the Drive-In, Jughead realizes the work is not so hard, that is, emotionally speaking. Not even the fact that, physically, there’s nothing fun on lifting heavy rocks can ruin his good mood. Spoken too soon: before they leave the construction site, some thugs arrive and destroy their equipment, and, worse of all, injure one of Archie’s friends. Jug doesn’t particularly like him, but he feels personally affected because the repercussions will certainly be bad for Mr Andrews. On top of it all, everything Sheriff Keller had to contribute on the matter was asking if the thugs had Serpents tattoos. No wonder he can’t solve Jason Blossom’s case.  

Y/N’s point of view

Y/N meets Jughead at Pop’s after class the next day. He’s concerned the delay on construction will affect Fred’s financial situation even more. They’re talking about it when Archie shows up and invites him to go to the Wyrm along with the rest of the guys who volunteered with them. The goal is to see if Moose can recognize his attacker, as he says. Y/N agrees with Jug that it’s a stupid idea, but it doesn’t change Arch’s mind at all. He leaves Pop’s pissed at them for not coming to help.

The baby shower looks more like tug war than anything else. Y/N is glad she convinced Jughead to join, of all her compelling arguments the one that really sealed the deal was “Free food.”. At least Betty is too busy making sure Polly is having a good time and that the Coopers don’t murder the Blossoms or the other way around to care about what Juggie and her are up to. That is until Archie barges in demanding to talk to Jug, then all eyes are on them. “Not the place, Arch...”, Y/N says through gritted teeth trying to guide the tall ginger to the door - to no luck. “Did you know that Jughead's father is a Serpent?”, Archiebald spits but Y/N doesn’t get a chance to reply before he continues his attack. “That's why he tried to stop me from going to the bar, so I wouldn't find out.” He turns back to Jughead. “After everything my dad has done for you...” Deep disappointment and hurt in his voice. “Archie, I can explain, okay? But not right now.” Jughead is pleading for Arch to let this go for the time being. Veronica manages to convince him of leaving and, despite the tense moment, Cheryl is more than happy to get back into party mode.

Y/N grabs hold of Jughead’s hand, with difficulty since he tries to snatch it away. When they find a secluded corner, she takes a moment to see what Archie’s actions resulted on: the beanie-clad boy’s broken-hearted and embarrassed. She notices that her silence is sparking a bit of fear in him. “My dad is...”, he starts his explanation but she cuts him off. “FP Jones, leader of the Southside Serpents.”, Y/N finishes for him. “How do you know that?” She sees a hint of the same suspicion he had in his eyes as the first time they met. “On restless nights I roam around town. At some point I was bound to end up at the Whyte Wyrm.” Y/N is hoping he’ll believe her. “And you’re... ok with that?” His voice cracks and his palms are sweaty, but she still holds onto them firmly. “I’m dating you, not your father.” They both chuckle and Jug’s muscles start to relax. “That being said, I’ve been trying to find a way to bring up the fact that we should question the Serpents on the drug deal with Jason...” She tiptoes the subject, hoping to not scare him away. “You’re probably right. We can go to my dad’s after this and see what he has to say.”

Jughead’s point of view

Jug hopes that the mess of clothes and beer bottles won’t scare off Y/N. FP glances between his son and the girl he’s familiar with in confusion for a few seconds until realization hits. “Dad, this is Y/N.”, Jug introduces his girlfriend. “We’ve met.” His father chuckles. “Nice to see you again, Mr. Jones.” She shakes his hand. “Please, FP.”  Jughead takes a deep breath, preparing himself for the interrogation since his dad seems to think this is simply about Archie showing up at the Wyrm. “We know the Serpents had some kind of drug thing going on with Jason Blossom.” From his first question, he knows his dad is hurt about it, but both know trust is a work in progress between them. “What? Where'd you hear that?” Jug is disappointed that his dad is still trying to hide it - though he doesn’t know his reasons behind it. “Jason's girlfriend.”, Y/N answers. Mr. Jones sighs in defeat and explains what kind of deal they had with Jason before he was murdered. “Jeez, Dad. Did you tell the cops that?”Juggie’s letting his emotions get the best of him but notices Y/N’s very rational and most likely taking in every piece of information and storing safely in her memory. “What do you think?” It’s fairly obvious, though, now that the Sheriff knows, it’s just a matter of time until he stops by to handle his own investigation and the teens warn Mr. Jones. “Anything else you wanna ask?”, FP asks rhetorically, already expecting something but hoping his son doesn’t have to ask. “Did you have anything to do with Jason Blossom's death?” This is the question that really gets to FP and Jug regrets having asked, but he needs to hear it to believe it. “I'm not a perfect father, Jughead, no getting around that, but I'm no killer.” The pain breaks his dad’s voice. Y/N grabs his hand sympathetically and they leave the trailer. Jug felt honesty in his dad’s answers and somewhat relief that his girlfriend knows FP. Now there’s nothing else about his life he has to keep a secret. 

Once they leave, Jug stops Y/N and stares longingly at her, as if this was the last time he was going to see her before things change. She assures him that they won’t change and, if they do, there’s nothing wrong with it because she’s there for him. “Your dad kinda looks like an older Billy Loomis.”, Y/N jokes, lighting the mood. “Thought we agreed he doesn’t look like a killer...” He chuckles. “Yeah, didn’t think that reference through.” They both laugh and make their way out of Sunnyside Trailer Park, Jug’s hand slithering on Y/N’s waist and pulling her close. The beanie-clad boy tries not to think about how differently this conversation can go with Archie.

Y/N’s point of view

Y/N arrives late at the student lounge because she had to return a few books to the library. The whole gang is already comfortable and deep in conversation when she enters. Jug scooches to the arm of the chair he’s on so she can sit, and something about the way his lips curl up makes Y/N think if they weren't in front of all his friends he’d kiss her. She’s assured Archie and him are back to their usual selves when Arch reveals his plans with Cheryl and Jug has a quick witted comment about it. This time, Juggie is not the only one, though. It seems only Betty doesn’t see the evident manipulation coming from the Blossoms. Y/N doesn’t blame Archie for not seeing it. She thinks he’s kind and understands why most girls find him attractive, but she also knows he’s not the brightest. However, whatever rivalry there is between Bets and her, she’ll never deny the blonde girl is smart. 

The bell rings and quickly the students make their way out, except for Jughead and her, since he’s subtly holding her back until it’s just them. Jug invites her over to the Andrews’ house for the first time since he’s been staying there. “While Archie is pimping himself out to Cheryl and Mr. Andrews is at work I’ll have the house to myself...” She finishes his thought. “Maybe I could share it with you and a movie?” He nods.

Jughead’s point of view

Jughead is nervous. This is the first time Y/N and him are alone in a while, since her parents are home and they started dating. He’s not sure if now it’s supposed to be different from before. He doesn’t want anything to change. But soon enough his worries are put to rest when Y/N comes from the kitchen with two large buckets of popcorn and snuggles close to him. Just as he likes it. 

Jug keeps glancing to Y/N. His girlfriend's lips are much more appealing than the film or even the popcorn at this point. Soon it’s all he can think about and it seems so can Y/N as she pulls his face, aligning their lips and giving him a breathless kiss.

Jughead tumbles on top of her. Y/N’s legs straddling him as he lowers himself on her. Lips exploring the crook of her neck, stealing moans as he goes. His fingers find their way on her waist, his thumb hooked on the hem of her shirt, pushing it slightly up. He stills them there, lips still connected with Y/N’s. Almost as if Y/N knew he needed confirmation that what their doing is ok, she sits up, breaking the kiss and pulling her shirt over her head. A light blush appears on her cheeks and she gazes down. Jughead guides her chin up, looking straight on her eyes. “You’re beautiful.” She bites her lower lip, tugging on his “S” T-shirt and he complies, mindlessly throwing it on the ground on top of hers before crashing his lips back on hers. Y/N’s nails drag up on his back, surely leaving red trail marks, making him hiss seductively through the kiss. 

The break noise of Mr. Andrews parking his truck on the drive way startles them back to reality as they hurriedly dress themselves before Fred walks in the door. They look innocently sweet, just cuddling while watching a movie. Jughead shuffles to greet Mr. Andrews. “Don’t let me interrupt the movie.” He winks at Jug and the boy hides a grin. Part of him is thankful they were interrupted. He doesn’t want their first time to be on Mr. Andrews’ couch. He wants it to be special, as cliche as that sounds. 

Y/N’s point of view

Y/N barely got any sleep. Her mind kept replaying the previous night, wondering how it would’ve progressed had Mr. Andrews not arrived. In the morning, her head’s in the clouds, mindlessly playing with her cereal bowl as she considers if they’re ready or not for it. They haven’t been dating for that long but she’s in love with Jug even before they met. All she knows is that it felt right in the moment.

She hurries to the Blue and Gold, but what she finds there is not at all what she was expecting. Jug is hugging Betty, not in a friendly way, not entirely in a romantic way but a close thing between both. His hands are brushing in a comforting motion on the blonde’s back. A mild panic attack takes over Y/N and she’s thankful neither of them spotted her ,so she just leaves before either they see her and stop or don’t see her and do something else. The thought of it draws the oxygen out of Y/N’s lungs.

She doesn’t see Jug for the rest of the day or get a single text. Her imagination plays on maybe that night didn’t mean the same for both of them, or worse: it made him change his mind about being with her altogether. Y/N knows she overreacted once before and chooses not to jump to conclusions.

They arrive at the Auto Shop and both get off from the truck. Two of three doors are closed and the lights are low. A silhouette with it’s back to them is visible and Jughead notices a gray overall tied around their waist along with a backwards Harley-Davidson cap, tucking in any hair that may get in the way of working. As they get close, he notices the feminine features of the person cleaning some tools. “Y/S/N!” Sweet Pea shouts and confirms Jug’s assumption on the gender. But she doesn’t seem to hear him over her headphones, so he taps her shoulder, making the girl turn around startled. She relaxes instantly at the sight of the tall Serpent and takes off her headphones, letting it rest on her neck. A light blush creeps on Jug’s cheeks as he stares at the Serpents’ patch on her T-shirt that’s just over her breast. “If it were a Ghoulie, it would’ve killed you.”, Sweets jokes. “I think the expression is ‘if it were a snake, it would've bit you’.”, she retorts. “I’m a snake, Y/S/N. I can bite you if you want.” He can’t help but flirt - it’s in his nature. “Very funny. I think I’ll pass. What can I do for you tonight, Sweetest?” She places her silver shiny tools back on the drawers of a rusty snap-on. “Not for me tonight, Sweet-heart.” He winks at her and steps aside, revealing Jughead behind him. The beanie-clad boy greets her with a wave and a - too familiar - Jones’ smirk. It’s inevitable for him to wonder if there’s anything between her and SP, but him being the giant flirt he is makes it hard to differentiate playful from real teasing. 

The two Serpents take the motorcycle from the truck and settle it below one of the few lights that are still on. Y/N cleans the oil from her hands with a rag she got from her back pocket and runs her finger lightly over the motorcycle’s gas tank and seat. “A Honda CB 550. She’s a beauty.” Her voice is filled with admiration. “This beauty is not starting up.”, Sweet Pea reveals. “How long since the carburetors were cleaned?”, she asks, inspecting them as well as she could before taking it apart. “I don’t know. Haven’t ridden in a while.”, Jughead confesses embarrassingly. Before moving back to the Southside, he had completely shut off that Serpent part of his life, which is actually his new friends’ entire lives. “You let this baby just sit still for God knows how long and simply started it up again?” She takes her focus from the bike and into him. SP just chuckles quietly, knowing how passionate Y/N is about motorcycles and how pissed she gets when someone “mistreats” theirs. 

Y/N picks up some solvent, a few tools and a compressed air gun, laying it all over a small table near the bike. “It will be done in 2 hours.”, she says, already unscrewing a few bolts to get the seat out of her way. “See you in 2 hours then.” Sweet Pea winks and signs Jug to follow him. He’s reluctant to leave, but it seems Y/N likes to work by herself. “There’s nothing between us, just so you know.” SP starts the truck. “I wasn’t...” He’s cut off. “It was obvious.” Jughead doesn’t reply, but can’t help a smile at the news. When they get back to the Wyrm, Fangs had run Jug’s errand and it was all a matter of time before the boy had his bike back. Having a little over 30 minutes left, Sweets drives them all the way to the Auto Shop again.

Alarm Clock:

5:45 AM

The sound saves him from that nightmare. He rubs the sleep off his eyes and puts on his beanie. With his towel, toothbrush and paste, he slides on his flipflops and walks out of his “room”. Alone in the deserted corridors of Riverdale High, Jughead feels like and extra in a Wes Craven movie. The still sleepy boy rests his beanie on the hanger in the locker room, relieves himself of his clothes and steps into the shower. He’s been having a hard time shaking the bad feeling since he woke up. That dream looked very fanciful but something about it felt realistic, in a subconscious level. The hot water is washing away the memories from the nightmare while he convinces himself it’s completely preposterous that any of that could have some link to reality. Ultimately, the boy much rather think about the kiss from the previous night. 

Jughead wraps a towel around his hips and combs his hair in front of the steamed mirror. He is surprised at someone standing behind him. With a killer on the loose, that encounter made Juggie a bit jumpier than usual. Relief washes over him when he recognizes the ginger locks of his best friend. However, confusion is stamped all over the face of an oblivious Archie, who was at school that early just to practice his songs in peace and quiet. Jug runs his fingers through his still wet dark hair, trying to find a tangible answer to why he is there at 6:10 a.m. taking a shower. Arch doesn’t buy his facade and pushes for the truth. An ugly truth it is. Jug shows him the closet he’s been living in since the Drive-In shut down. Archie looks at the thin mattress and pillow on the floor, clothes hanged on the wall, canned food and bottled drinks on top of a forgotten furniture, a stack of books, some from the library, other his and one he got from Y/N and hasn’t been able to return even having finished reading it, among other few things Jug owns. 

The beanie-clad boy confesses he hasn’t been living at home since his mom left because his dad couldn’t keep a job after Archie’s dad fired him. The bell rings and Jug is quick to close the door of his deepest secret. The concern is more than visible on his best friend’s face, which makes him hide deeper how much that situation is hurting him, by pretending it’s temporary. Before walking away to his first class, Jughead begs him not to tell Y/N or anyone else. 

Y/N’s point of view

Y/N wakes up smiling. However, a little fear takes over her as if the previous night had been just a dream. Although the second she runs her fingers through her lips it’s as if she’s transported back to when Jug stole a kiss from her. That makes all of those times she sat alone watching Jughead also by himself at Pop’s seem like it happened a million light years before. Unfortunately, it reminds her of some homework she must hand in that morning, from first to last periods, or she’ll only graduate within a million light years.

Still wrapped by a warm feeling from the memory of the kiss, she rushes to Riverdale High’s library in order to speed read a dozen books simultaneously and complete the whole thing. Y/N’s in such a hurry that she doesn’t see Jug and Arch getting out of the locker room when she passes by, as well as she goes unnoticed. That was very fortunate, for she would have changed her plans without thinking twice, and some stains to their not even official relationship would be inevitable. Blame for failing isn’t something she wants to put on him. Despite she’s unaware, there is a force acting on their favor. It explains why Y/N feels more satisfied than usual when her papers are finished, third period is over, and her phone rings.

From: Jughead

Meet us at the student’s lounge in a few :)

From: Y/N

See you there ;) 

Everybody is already there when she arrives. Jughead saved a spot for her on the couch with his bag, which she found very cute. She sits right next to him and Betty starts speaking pronto. The subject is her missing sister. Y/N looks at Jug and they both realize they awkwardly haven’t given much thought to Polly. It makes her feel somewhat guilty, and, by Juggie’s expression, she knows that him too. While the blonde continues to explain the situation, self-reproach forces Y/N to really focus on that matter and come up with a quick plan. “When we were in her room, I noticed Polly hadn’t packed, so she couldn’t have intended to go far.” All eyes fall on her. “We can go on a search party in a 2-mile radius from the Sisters of Quiet Mercy after school today.” Jughead wraps his arms around her shoulders in agreement and support, which lasts just a few seconds because all the others stare unpolitely at them. Y/N flips out internally a bit, for she wanted that moment to last a lot longer, even after a glimpse into Betty’s dark personality, something that always seems to accompany those moments.

Jughead’s point of view

Juggie is on his way to his next class, wishing he could have given Y/N a proper good-bye, but he knows it’s best to avoid embarrassment. Archie calls him to speak about family matters. As he couldn’t take his dad being the one to blame for FP’s situation, finding a solution was imperative. Jug wasn’t too eager to accept living with them, but he jumped at the idea of his father working with Mr. Andrews. “You and Y/N, huh?”, Arch ironically shoots. “We may have had a moment...” Jughead is not ready to give that a name just yet, since he hasn’t even discussed it with Y/N.

Jug heads to Sunnyside Trailer Park as soon as school’s over. He’s hit by a load of memories, mostly bad ones. It looks worse than the last time he was there. Bottles roll as he opens the trailer’s door and FP appears, visible exhaustion on his unshaved, skinny face. The glass of bourbon on his hands is exactly why Jughead hasn’t been there since his mom left. Snarky comments aside, he looks genuinely interested on his son’s well being. Jughead cautiously mentions Mr. Andrews’ offer, just to find out his father had already refused it. He has to count to a hundred to remain calm enough not to make things more complicated and to find strong reasons to convince his dad turning around is the only move. Reasoning with FP is like punching a brick wall, though.

Y/N’s point of view

Jughead meets up with the rest of the group at the edge of Eversgreen Forest. Y/N quickly notices a gloomy mood on the boy, even if it looked as if he was trying his best to hide it. It seemed as the others just saw it as regular ol’ Jug mood and brushed it off. She, however, had come to know him quite well just from observing him at Pop’s, and more so now with their newfound friendship (relationship?). But she knows better than to talk about it now. The focus has to be on finding Polly.

They search through the woods in hopes to find Betty’s sister before the authorities or worse, the Blossoms. Jughead isn’t one for much words, neither is Y/N, but she’s finding his silence and distance troubling. Since they started talking, they haven’t really stopped, until now. They’ve been walking for an hour or so and he hasn’t even once tried to talk about Jason’s case, film theories or anything for that matter. She is just about to attempt a conversation with Jug when they get face to face with the devil. Clifford and Penelope have somehow found out about their plan to find Polly and came after them with Sheriff Keller on their side. The search party is dismissed, so Alice can make a public announcement. It’s not a surprise for Y/N or Jughead but the rest of the town seems disconcerted with the news of Polly Cooper carrying Jason Blossom’s baby. Y/N hopes that’s enough to stop that terrible family for going after Betty’s sister for a crime she obviously did not commit. 

"You didn't have to walk me home.” Y/N protests feebly, as Jug’s hand intertwines with hers and the warmth from it shields her from the chilly drizzle. “Uh, there's a killer on the loose, remember?” Same excuse he used the first night he escorted her. “Besides, isn't this what... You know... What people like us, who've gone through what we've gone through, do?”, Jughead awkwardly  asks as they stop in front of her house. “Remind me, what did we go through?” Y/N doesn’t quite know where this playful flirtiness comes from. Jughead slowly inches closer to her and she can enjoy a full experience of feelings emerging. This time, unlike the first one, which had a sort of desperation to it, his lips are much softer, but still just as passionate. Before they can part for air, Y/N cups Jughead’s cheeks with her palms holding on to that feeling for just a second more, trying to convey through kissing that he can count on her for anything. 

Jughead’s point of view

From: Archie

Come to the construction site

From: Jughead

Why?

From: Archie

Just come!

Jughead finds it weird that Arch would ask him to go there, knowing what the Drive-In meant to him, but his friend’s intentions are clear when he spots FP among the working crew. The boys hang out at the office trailer and hope finds it’s way into Jug’s thoughts - maybe this is the time FP finally gets his act together. Jughead knows better than to trust it, though. However, his instincts don’t kick in this time and, for a moment, he can almost see his sister back in Riverdale. Luckily, before his imagination takes him any further, his dad and Mr.Andrews walk in the office. Jug likes the sight of FP and Fred together so much, it’d be nice to hold on to it for just a little longer. Then, he suggests they all get a bite to eat at Pop’s. It’s almost as if bringing their parent’s friendship back erases the possibility of Archie and him having the same fate someday. 

The Chock’lit Shoppe is not crowded and they take a seat on a central booth. Conversation flows naturally between them as they eat. Jughead is almost transported to his childhood when this was a regular occurrence, before the two man drifted apart. Somehow the subject finds it’s way into Jug’s writing and Archie can’t contain himself as to tell them about who he writes with. “Y/N, huh?” FP shifts on his seat and leans on the table. “Who is Y/N? Is that your girlfriend?”, he asks with too much fatherly interest for Jug’s taste. “She's...” Archie starts but Jug cuts him off. He’s not ready to have that talk with his dad yet, and he hasn’t even had it with Y/N in the first place. “I wanna know more about the band.” He fishes back to the prior subject. “What was the name of the band?” He can only wonder how bad it was since his dad let out a loud laugh. “It was called The Fred Heads.” Mr. Andrews is embarrassed to disclose it. Juggie chuckles, since it was worse then he imagined. 

Archie can’t help but want a jam session with his dad’s old band partner. Fred leaves them in the basement since he still has a few business things to take care off. Jug doesn’t really play, but watching FP and his best friend rocking out is certainly fun, until a few hard truths come out. In Jughead’s book, nothing good lasts long anyways, so before he knows it, his dad is already taking a few sips out of his flask. He carries his old man all the way from Andrews’ house to Sunnyside and drops him on the couch at his trailer, nothing he hasn’t done before. The beanie-clad boy takes that moment to remind his dad of what he’s missing out, but the man is already asleep and Jug is left wondering if JB will ever be back.

Y/N’s point of view

Y/N’s getting some books from her locker when Archie stops next to her, looking as if he has something important to say. They have been introduced since Juggie and her started hanging out, but nothing more than that, which leads the clever girl to guess it’s about Jughead. “Is there anything wrong with Jug?” She’s hoping not and Arch seems to be neutral towards it, but something still feels off. “If there wasn’t, there is now.” The ginger boy points with his eyes behind Y/N’s shoulder to Sheriff Keller walking Jughead out of school. “Call my dad.”, the confused boy pleads them as they are both still in shock. Whatever Archie came to tell her is left aside as it suddenly doesn’t seem that important anymore. “Do you have his dad’s number?”, she asks, hurriedly closing her locker with all her belongings inside so she can focus on helping Jug. “No, but I can probably get it from my dad’s files.” Arch leads them to Andrews Construction. 

They search for the files to no luck when Fred walks in. Y/N can’t even form a full sentence to explain what happened. Archie not only introduces them but brings his dad up to speed, who is quick to phone FP with his cell, unfortunately to no answer. “We can’t leave Jug alone.”, Arch states with conviction. “Y/N, get FP’s number and keep calling while I drive us to the Station.”, Mr. Andrews instructs handing Y/N his phone and they all run to his truck. When they arrive, a Deputy tells them Jughead is not being charged, just questioned about Jason’s murder. “If this is about the car we found, you should be questioning me and Betty, for we were all there.”, Y/N snaps and demands to know at what evidence they are holding him in, but since she’s not family, they can’t share it. She keeps calling FP and only reaching his voicemail. 

Sheriff Keller steps out of the interrogation room and Y/N immediately follows him, demanding to speak with Jughead. If it was anyone else asking, Tom would've denied instantly. Nevertheless, considering that Y/F/N and him are high school friends, he allows her a few minutes with Jug while he discusses the boy’s status with Fred. Jug is terrified that he’ll become an escape goat. His voice is low and calm but his eyes are way ahead in a future none of them would like to see. She brings him back to the present with a light touch to his hands. Y/N tries her best to assure him they’ll get him out, but when he asks about his dad, there’s not much she can do about that, except hope that Archie and her are enough for him. Fred supplies Jug with an alibi to which Keller has no other option than to release the boy. 

Jughead’s point of view