Rule rose an unimpressed eyebrow at the table of snacks, drinks, and badges with the words Hermione Lodge For Mayor, spinning on her heel and striding to the other side of the room to Fred Andrews table. Snatching two badges with Fred Andrews For Mayor, Rule pinned one to her shirt and looked around the room, smiling when she saw a 6' 3" boy with jet black hair walking her way, the usual cocky smirk on his plump pink lips. Large hand closing over hers, Sweet Pea took the extra pin from Rule's fingers and placed it on his shirt. "Evening, Angel. You're looking particularly lovely tonight-" His words were cut short by Hiram Lodge snapping at his daughter, something that made Rule want to walk over there and play a game of whack a mole. Per usual, Sweet Pea had a firm grip on Rule's waist, something she could've gotten out of and would've if Veronica hadn't locked eyes with her and shook her head in the slightest.
"Let's go inside," Rule nodded, Sweet Pea guiding her into the room by placing his hand on the small of her back. Sweet Pea plopped onto a chair next to Toni and Cheryl, Rule placing herself on his lap as she curled into him. "Do you two ever stop?" Rule smiled amusedly at Jughead, Sweet Pea simply shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders. "You're one to talk, I'm surprised we don't have a Bughead baby yet." Sweet Pea scrunches his eyebrows together in adorable confusion, mouthing the word Bughead to Rule. "Cheryl, do you wanna explain it or should I?"
As Cheryl dove excitedly into the subject of 'Shipping' and 'OTPs', Rule and Toni smirked at one another. Rule could feel a shiver go down her spine when she locked eyes with Hiram Lodge, the man smirking knowingly at her. A relieved breath escaped Rule when the lights went down, Hermione and Fred shaking hands on the stage at the request of Alice Cooper. Two hands squeezed Rule's hips, clamping her lips together in the hopes of not yelping. Rule whipped around to look at Sweet Pea, placing her finger in the center of his chest while whisper yelling. "Boy, do not test me. Keep it up and I'll tell everyone about the birthmark on your ass shaped like a-"
Wide-eyed, Sweet Pea clamped a hand over his girlfriend's mouth. "I get the point, you evil woman!" Rule smiled at him, kissing the palm of his hand and turning her attention to Alice Cooper who had just started talking. "Jumping right in, fear and unrest rule the streets. Hermione Lodge, how would you restore safety to this town?"
Rule rolled her eyes in two separate directions, mumbling under her breath so only her friends could hear. "Maybe you should start with arresting your husband," She could feel Toni's pity eyes on her, something that made her squirm. "Well, we're already making strides, Alice. My husband and I personally recruited Sheriff Minetta from Centerville after Tom Keller resigned. Not one week on the job and he's already apprehended Midge Klump's murderer." Rule cried out in outrage, Alice Cooper locking eyes and giving her a slight shake of her head as she asked for Fred's rebuttal.
"We don't know if he's the killer," Everyone except the Southside booed, Rule flipping off a few men that looked at her. "All I'm saying is that let's not call for blood until we've had a trial. What does that say about us? About Riverdale?" Hermione Lodge scoffed, looking over at Veronica and Hiram who both nodded. "You talk about not calling for blood, Fred? Are you aware of a group called the dark circle?"
"No, I'm not."
"Then let me enlighten you. The dark circle is a dangerous, radical group that traffics in terror, violence, and street-warfare. A group... started by your son, Archie." Gasps echoed around the room, Fred looking at Archie in disappointment. "Now I ask you, Citizens of Riverdale, how can we trust a man to run a town when he can't even keep his own house in order?" It was then, in that very second, that all hell broke loose, Veronica being the first to notice.
"Oh my god! It's the black hood!"
Archie tackled his father to the floor, Hiram doing the same with his wife and daughter as gunshots rang throughout the room. Sweet Pea covered Rule with his body, the pair running towards the exit. Rule, Cheryl, and Toni all had their hands intertwined as if they were in kindergarten. It seemed like the bullets were surrounding themselves around Rule as they ran like a bolt of lighting, Sweet Pea tucking her in closer if that was possible. The four didn't stop running until they were in Toni's car, driving down the road before Sweet Pea noticed something that made him park in a hurry.
"Angel," The crack of despair in Sweet Pea's voice drew everyone's attention, his eyes locked on Rule's left side. Rule looked down, red liquid seeping through her shirt. As if a switch had flipped inside her, Rule started to get lightheaded, shouts from the three others in the car drowned out by the pounding of blood in her head. Cheryl reached up from the backseat, pulling her white top over her head to leave her in a tank top, pressing it firmly against Rule's side and apologizing when she cried out. "Sweet Pea, drive!"
Sweet Pea drove like a bat out of hell to the hospital twenty minutes away, making it in under ten. Maybe it was because of the blood loss inducing hallucinations, or maybe she exaggerating, but Rule didn't think she'd ever seen Sweet Pea move so fast, tossing open the passenger door and hoisting her into his arms while Cheryl applied steady pressure. "Help! Somebody help us! My girlfriend's been shot!"
Rule could feel her eyes starting to shut, but she'd be damned if she didn't tell Sweet Pea one last thing, even if it came out in a slur. "I love you, Sweets." Sweet Pea placed her on a dark blue stretcher, telling her he loved her too. It was then that he noticed, much to his panic, that her eyes were shut. "We're losing her!" An oxygen mask was placed over her mouth, Rule's pulse getting weaker. Sweet Pea watched the love of his life be taken away, his hands being placed on the back of his head.
"Please, don't take her from me."