At Pop's...
Jug Pov:
I held the door open in a gentlemanly fashion as the bell inside of Pop's chimed a pleasant chime over our heads. Betty walked in, Lola attached to her hip as we searched for an open booth. I sat down, Lola scooting closer to the window in the seat across from me. Betty gandered between the available seats, ultimately deciding to sit next to Lola.
Before long, Pop came to our table, notepad in hand. "Hi Jughead! Haven't seen you in a while. And Betty? It's been even longer since I've seen you!", he said cheerily, displaying his well-known smile, filled with kindness. "Are you two together again?", he asked curiously. Slightly taken aback, I directed my eyes at Betty, her mirroring my shocked expression.
Pop seemingly took the hint. "Oh. I forgot that you two were the two selected... Never mind. Excuse me for asking. Anyways, who might this little one be?". This question brought a smile to both mine and Betty's face. "This is Lola! She our new addition!", Betty exclaimed. I hated to even ponder it, but her excitement and joy made my heart melt. I quickly recovered from my sudden change in thought, however, before chiming in.
"She'll be staying with us for a while! She's a wonderful little one.", I added, grinning over at her. Pop chuckled. "I can see that. Welcome to Pop's, Lola. Anyways, what can I get for you guys today?". "A strawberry milkshake...". Betty and I spoke in unison, her expression suddenly becoming an unusual mix between hurt and in awe at the fact that I remembered her milkshake preference all these years later.
Betty cleated her throat, me leaning back into the booth as a way of telling her that she could order. "Um, right. I'll have a strawberry milkshake, please.", she ordered. She turned to face Lola. "What would you like, Sweetie?", she asked before quickly remembering that she'd never had a milkshake before.
Lola became confused and stressed in the situation, panicking at the fact that she didn't know the answer to the question. We both reached for a hand as I shot Pop an apologetic look. The look he returned was filled with understanding. "It's okay, Hun. Just breathe. Do you want me to choose one for you? If you don't like it, you can share with me and Daddy.", she suggested.
Lola gave a small nod in response as she tried to return her breathing to normal. "Could you please get her a vanilla one, Pop?". He nodded. "Certainly. And a chocolate for you, Jughead?", he assumed. I chuckled. "You know me so well. Also...". "Some fries to share, please.", Betty stated, cutting in and beaming at me.
Pop eyed us, as if he didn't believe that something wasn't going on between us, before he himself cleared his throat. "I'll have your order right up!", he said before he walked back behind the counter. I inhaled a shaky breath, attempting to recover my emotions from the confusing situation that we had just created.
We were both... nice. She seemed happy. I was happy. We worked together. Neither of us flared at each other. I knew that this probably wouldn't be the type of situation that would reoccur very often, but I was glad that I was able to experience it, no matter how brief it had been. Betty still looked content as she played peek-a-boo with Lola across the table, both of them bursting into a fit of high-pitched giggles.
The food didn't take long, and soon enough, we were all sitting at the table enjoying our food... together. We passed the milkshakes around, Lola taking little sips of each of them before concluding that the strawberry was her favorite. "Looks like she's a Momma's girl.", Betty pointed out. All of us laughed, REAL positive energy radiating off of each of us for the first time since we've been together.
It made me wonder if I could ever truly be happy with Betty. I didn't know if I would ever be able to get over the hurt that she had inflicted, or if she would want to get back with me, but at least I knew that maybe we could be friends at the very minimum. I wrote up the check for Pop. I stood up, rounding the side of the table and absentmindedly offering a hand to Betty, her taking it before I thought to withdraw. A blush rose to my cheeks, Lola pointing and laughing. "Oh shush, you.", I teased, lifting the giggling bundle of sunshine up before we walked out to the car together.
🍔🍟🍦🥛~~ Bughead rising? Maybe.... guess you'll have to keep reading to find out.
