#Andrew is too good to even be compared to a football guy so

[crazy-fangirl2524]

Reading aftg makes me think maybe all those football fans aren’t crazy because I will do all those things and more for exy too

[jovalencia]

I bet you didn’t know when you followed me that you were signing up for a play by play of literally any interesting thing that happened in my life but here we are. but literally this whole situation with the cheater guy is insane like when he confronted bi guy jason it was down in the lounge and the cheater brought his friend to keep him from beating the shit out of jason because he was so disrespected by the fact that jason had the gall to tell his girlfriend that he was cheating as if the one who was clearly in the wrong here wasn’t him for cheating on his girlfriend. but yeah they had a whole long confrontation in which the cheater had the knife that he always carries, because that’s what normal people do, visible so that jason (who is already small compared to mr cheater AND mr mediator) knows he’s fucked if he says the wrong thing. and after that whole long conversation jason manages to skitter away. but then cheater being the normal guy that he is waited outside of the door for bi guy 2 to come back and threaten to beat the shit out of him even though bi guy 2 is bigger even than the cheater, played football for like eight years, and doesn’t give a shit about cheater beating the shit out of him. so he goes fuck you I don’t care then runs back to his room. now cut to me going to the dining hall and running into the bi guys, girl who doesn’t like me, and guy who’s so irrelevant that I haven’t mentioned him even once yet. jason was still shaking, bi guy 2 was comparing himself to archie andrews and both of them are refusing to leave each other’s sides lest they…. idk get jumped in the dining hall I guess. so we proceeded to have a dinner with severely fucked up vibes in which barely anybody talked except to express how weird this whole thing is and how odd the walls fucking bonkers cheater guy is. but I did make the girl who doesn’t like me laugh a couple of times and we made understanding eye contact a couple of times too so I think we bonded and that the confusion about her thinking I talked shit about her has passed. so we walked back to the building in silence and walked up the stairs in silence and deposited the bi guys in there rooms and fled like we were dropping a baby at a fire station in the middle of the night. girl who doesn’t like me and I went up to our floor and I was like “yeah this is fucked and you’re way closer to this than I am so good luck with all that” and she was like “thanks” and then that was it. this story is so boring when I type it all out but when I tell you bi guy jason legitimately fears for his fucking life right now. and the worst part? the riverdale watch party is suspended until further notice. right when we were about to watch the midnight club.

[just-another-ficwriter]

Riverdale 5x04 Thoughts

SPOILERS under the cut

*Is this the epic highs and lows of football Archie talked about?

*What ever happened to Mad Dog?

*This dream squandered is whack

*Oh football and cheerleaders

*NOT JUG ON THE GROUND-

*Even Pops is there🥺

*And Sweet Pea😍

*Oh and Hiram😬

*Archies reading to his new friend🥺🥺

*Feeling Archie’s hair cut this season, a long time coming

*RIVERDALE HUH SOUNDS NICE - NO

*Even the signs ruined

*WHERE IS POP

*La Bonne Nuit is THE WRYM

*Yes Toni QUEEN

*I am here for Toni, Fangs and Pea, no one else

*Sweet Pea’s tattoos🤤

*TONIS PREGNANT

*Why is the Dad a secret!!!!!!

*IF POP TATE IS DEAD I SWEAR-

*GIVE BETTY COOPER A BREAK

*Im sorry, the trash bag killer, what?

*I love her hair already

*Is she dating someone that looks like her serial killer brother...

*She has a cat!!

*Wait is it saying Mom-

*Dont open the door!!!!!!!!

*Shit even I screamed

*Give us more Betty Cooper in blue

*Ew Betty bin this guy

*Chadwicks had one line and I hate him

*NO LITTLE CHADS THANK U PLS

*Where the hell is Ronnie working

*KATY KEENE CAMEO PLEASE

*The sex was amazing🤮

*What accident??????

*Willing to put my life on it that Chad caused what ever accident their talking about

*Not her Mother comparing her husband to her Dad

*And calling Veronica being successful threatening to her aLPHa huSbANd

*WHAT IS THIS ACCIDENT

*Oh a helicopter crash...

*Not another freaking Glamergé egg

*Someone call Cheryl to steal this one too

*SHE SOLD THE EGG

*YES VEE

*Her concern for Archie ahisodofjdm

*Oh Jug honey

*’And you drink too much’😢

*Jug looks so miserable

*Jug wrote a book about him and Betty🥺

*Oh so now Jug does one night stands

*GET THAT T-SHIRT OFF

*No it’s not okay!!!!!!

*Is she a stalker?

*ITS ONLY 342 PAGE

*Hmm, I wonder if he’ll steal her book

*Will I ever get over Jug having Archie saved on his phone as Archie Andrews? Probably not

*No wonder everyone works at the school, everything else is shut down

*I AM LIVING FOR THE FACT KEVIN AND FANGS WERE THE ONLY COUPLE TO SURVIVE THE TIME JUMP

*You mean Pea didn’t go to college-

*(Rewriting canon in my head so he did go to college)

*He looks so good though🤤

*They saved the serpents AND Toni got Queen, I love to see it

*#makesweetpeaking

*Oh the tension at the mention of Cheryl

*Why is Cheryl being so weird

*Oh no not Nana Rose

*REGGIE WORKS FOR HIRAM LODGE

*Oh they’ve done him so dirty

*Cheryl painting Toni I CANT

*GET CHONI BACK TOGETHER NOW

*How is Nana Rose even still alive

*SAVE CHERYL BLOSSOM

*He put all that work into the gym and he just closed it while he was gone???

*The town really has been destroyed

*SODALE

*THE GHOULIES ARE BACK

*POP TATE

*Everyone’s home🥺

*That parallel to season 1 though

*Jug looks so unhappy man

*THEY’RE FINALLY RECOGNISING TONI AS A MAIN

*Jugs still narrating!!

*Why would you get in that truck, is the skeleton on front not enough of a warning??

*Holy shit it’s over already

*That felt like a whole new show and I loved it uaiaodjdl

Come talk to me about it!

[aresaphrodites]

WIP GAME

Thank you to @tory-b for tagging me in this even though she KNOWS I have way too many WIPs to count... you’re a nightmare and I adore you. 

So since we all know that I’m shit at writing lately, all of these are going to be filed under: I currently have 1 or 2 chapters of these stories written but I don’t know if I’ll ever actually post them so tell me what y’all think and give me encouragement because I’m dying over here:

Blitz: Bughead || A Friday Night Lights AU. Jughead Jones has a game plan. Graduate high school, get a scholarship to Notre Dame, play college ball, go pro, marry Betty Cooper and have five kids. And then he shatters his leg and all of his dreams. 

Ghost of You: Bughead || Getting a job at Jones & Blossom Publishing is Betty Cooper’s dream come true. She loves her coworkers, the stories she gets to read, and the fact that she suddenly has inspiration for her novel. Things she doesn’t love? Jughead Jones, the Publisher, who’s rude and standoffish and makes her feel like an incompetent child. 

Jughead Jones knows what it’s like to have the world in your hands and six feet underneath you in just a matter of moments. Scarred from a tragedy in his past; he’s forgotten what it’s like to love or to even be happy. Can the girl with sunshine in her heart save a man drowning in the darkness? 

How Little You Know: Bughead || Jughead Jones gets adopted by the Lodge family when he’s six years old. Veronica/Jughead adopted sibling AU. When he graduates college, he finds that he’s in love with their childhood friend, Betty Cooper. Only he doesn’t realize it until she’s parading around her new boyfriend that she’s very happy with. Cue Jughead trying to figure out why he’s suddenly hating Betty’s smile, Veronica trying to get her idiot brother to open his eyes, Archie enjoying all the drama, and Betty realizing that you can have all those things you’ve ever wanted. 

Untitled PR Stunt AU: Bughead || Jughead Jones is a name that everyone who’s anyone knows. Son of Oscar winning actor FP Jones, he’s made his way to the top of Hollywood and even has the pretty awards to show for it. What else does he have? A terrible attitude and way too many late nights with girls he doesn’t remember. When his management team has finally had enough, they decide to pull off the biggest PR stunt Jughead’s ever had to do. 

After Betty Cooper’s journalism piece is rejected for her campus’s prestigious newspaper, she feels a sense of loss and puts all her focus on studying to become an elementary teacher instead. When she runs into Jughead Jones--literally, she’s given the chance of a lifetime. With soft blonde hair and even gentler green eyes, Betty Cooper is just the right girl to turn around Jughead’s deteriorating reputation. He can’t stand her and that’s fine. After all, all Betty needs is one good story. 

Untitled High School AU: Jonsa || Sansa Stark doesn’t mean to fall for Jon Targaryen; senior captain of the Winterfell Ravens and her brother’s closest friend. But she does.

Untitled Friends-to-Lovers AU: Jonsa || After Robb makes fun of Jon for not knowing how to flirt with girls, Sansa decides to be the one to show him the ropes. It’s going perfectly; until he actually meets a girl that falls for him. Sansa has to choose between letting Jon be happy with someone else or admitting that she’s been in love with him this whole time. 

who we are (who we’ll become): Bughead || Jughead Jones has it all. Rich, entitled, and arrogant; he may be an Academy Award winner, but he’s no one’s favorite. After he’s busted for his third DUI, he’s forced back to his small hometown of Riverdale in hopes of reconnecting with the man he used to be. A change of scenery, he can handle. But seeing his highschool girlfriend that he left behind years ago? That was something he never planned on.

wild horses (couldn’t drag me away): Bughead, Celebrities AU, drug addiction, reconnecting, hurt/comfort. || “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson.

crazy beautiful: bughead || He’s got everything to lose; she’s got something to prove. Five years after her father killed her sister and then shot himself, Betty Cooper returns to Riverdale High for her senior year. No one wants her around; except for Jughead Jones. Jughead has it all; 4.0 GPA, great friends, a happy family, and a bright future at Stanford. His life is perfect, aside from the fact that his little sister is dying and there’s nothing he can do to save her. 

Betty can’t forgive Jughead for turning his back on her all those years ago, but he’s not going to let history repeat itself again. 

a little town (called riverdale): CORE FOUR AU. || Football star Jason Blossom is the victim of a hit-and-run right before his senior year of high school. Him not being able to ever play football again alters the lives of the core four in ways they never expected. 

Archie Andrews doesn’t know why he can’t stop thinking about Jason Blossom. After all, he never even really knew the guy. But suddenly he finds himself wanting to help the other boy whenever he can; no matter how badly Jason sometimes wishes he would leave him alone. 

Veronica Lodge watches her boyfriend become enamored by someone else, but she can’t bring herself to care. All she cares about is Cheryl Blossom, who isn’t the mean girl she wishes everyone thought she was. 

Betty Cooper can’t sleep. She can’t eat. She can’t think. All she can think of is the night of Reggie’s party, of Jason’s accident, and about the secret she’s been hoarding that could ruin everything. 

Jughead Jones wants to write a groundbreaking story, that’s all he wants to do. He’s never had a conversation with Betty Cooper, but he knows he can’t stand her. She’s the perfect star student who’s always smiling and that everyone loves. When she confides in him after a panic attack, he has to choose between being her friend or using the information she’s just given him to write the story of a lifetime. 

the city of (our broken) dreams: ONE-SHOT. varchie & bughead || Betty marries Archie. Jughead marries Veronica. Betty loves Jughead, Jughead loves Betty. Archie loves Veronica, Veronica loves Archie. Each of them have it all; all of their dreams came true. So they smile at each other and act like the best of friends when they all know the truth. The person standing next to them isn’t the person they love. 

truth runs wild: Choni || Veronica dares Cheryl to kiss Toni. She doesn’t dare Cheryl to fall in love with her, but she does. 

New York, I Love You: Core Four Gossip Girl AU. Betty Cooper tries to figure out how to win the heart of a boy who she isn’t sure even has one while doing her best to keep her family from falling apart after a huge scandal. Veronica Lodge has a huge secret that’s killing her to keep, but telling people would mean she would ruin Archie Andrews’ life. Archie Andrews is coping with the PTSD he has after the events of last year. All he wants is to keep his grades up and get into college on the west coast so he can leave New York behind, once and for all. Jughead Jones just wants to prove to his parents that he isn’t some worthless party animal. He also wants to prove to Betty Cooper that he can be worthy of her love; too bad he isn’t the only one anymore.

Ghost of Girlfriend’s Past AU: Bughead || Jughead Jones has it all. He’s the most sought after photographer in California and he gets to travel to the most exotic places and eat all the best foods. His life couldn’t get any better. Then he goes back to Riverdale for his best friend’s wedding and comes face to face with Betty Cooper, his childhood best friend whose heart he broke years ago. When she makes it apparent that she has no interest in getting to know Jughead now, he realizes that he’s been missing the most important thing this entire time. Of course it takes the help of three ghosts to see that. 

Family Man AU: Bughead || Thirteen years ago, Jughead and Betty said goodbye to each other in a crowded airport. Jughead promised he would come back to her after she pleaded for him to turn away his internship and stay with her in Riverdale. That was the last time he ever saw her. Now, he’s thirty-four and has absolutely no regrets. Until a man shows up and tells him that he’s got it all wrong. When Jughead wakes up the next day, he’s suddenly back in Riverdale, and that’s not all. He’s married to Betty Cooper, has two kids and a dog, drives a minivan, and makes less than 100k a year. How the hell is he supposed to get through this? 

OKAYYYYYY. This is getting long so I’m just going to end it here. These are all the WIPs that I actively write for so... :) 

[creativeashproductions]

Fate // Jughead Jones

Summary: Returning to the town you fled a decade ago following a career failure you never expected to fall in love with him again. You didn’t want to fall in love after the New York love you believed you had. It seems fate wanted to teach you a lesson again.

Characters: Jughead Jones x Reader, Betty Cooper (mentioned), Veronica Lodge, Archie Andrews (mentioned), and Reggie Mantle (mentioned).

Words: 2263

Disclaimer: I do now own Riverdale or the characters. I do not own any gifs that appear in this either or images because they’re probably off google images. The gif at the end comes from a youtube video of angst ridden Jughead scenes by the account littlesociopath other wise known as @wallflowerproduction

Warnings: Possible swearing, implied mental and emotionally abuse, fluff and angst.

Author: Caitsy.

A/N: I never actually edit my writing and I apologize for that but I’m way too busy to edit. This is also based on the Hallmark series Chesapeake Shores.

Master List

Prompt List

ASK US A QUESTION LIST

You were firstly a playwright that had an astounding first play that had your name in the leagues of famous playwrights. You riding the high with your sold out play until a year later your second play was brought to stage. It came with mixed reviews but your fears of failure were hit when your third play was a massive crash with so much negative criticism that barely any tickets were sold after the opening night.

You retreated back to your hometown of Riverdale feeling pathetic. You hadn’t been back in Riverdale in the ten years since you graduated high school. You left behind everything for the big city. Even the boy was your confidant.

When your parents divorced following your mother leaving your barely there father you changed. First your old sister Anna ran when she graduated five years before you to build a new, albeit parentally parallel version, with two kids and a divorce. On graduation day you had your car packed for the rest of your life.

You promised yourself you wouldn’t come back but here you were standing on your family porch watching the kids play in the street. You had been back for three days to hide out with your little sister.

“He’s back in town.” Bella said tucking her legs under herself.

“Who?”

“Jughead.” Bella simply said, “Look I don’t know what happened in New York but Jughead won’t close the door in your face.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do.” Bella softly spoke.

“I broke his heart.” You sadly smiled thinking back on the day you told him you weren’t coming back. Just remembering his face split your heart in two, “Besides isn’t he happy with Betty?”



“They barely lasted a month after you left, you would know if you let me tell you that years ago.” Bella sung with a smug smirk.

You were shocked to hear that they had split up. Where you saw Jughead you would see Betty and vice versa. Maybe that’s why leaving was so easy. Knowing was too busy to hang out with you and that distance helped but it still hurt ten years later.

“He thinks I’m a pitiful human.” You grunted tapping your fingers against the chair, “I told him I was going to make it big and never have to come back. Yet here I am.”

“Has Ian called you yet?”

You tensed up remember the man you wasted seven years on both professionally and personally. Ian had been your mentor before it blossomed into a relationship you drowned yourself in. It took a year before your feelings for Jughead faded behind but things didn’t pan out. You caught Ian cheating and realized how toxic he was.

You vividly remember him praising your first play before cutting you down with the way you went about your second play. When you brought up wanting to sent a manuscript out he scoffed and reminded you that you were good but not that good.

“Ian’s part of my New York life. That part is done.” You spat, “I wasted seven years on someone who didn’t appreciate me. God I’m so stupid.”

“Will you tell me what happened?”

“Maybe another day.” You sulked climbing to your feet, “Gram threatened me to get out of the house. She says hiding out with just make the experience worse.”

Your gram was one smart lady and nobody went against her words. That’s why you had your jacket on and phone in your pocket. The first place you would go was Pops for a milkshake that no milkshake in New York could compare to.

“Wants some company?"



“Don’t you have that coffee shop you attend to.” You winked pressing a kiss against your sister’s cheek, “See you at supper.”

You knew people in town had heard of your return so when you walked in your were prepared to see looks from everyone. Didn’t make it any more comfortable as you leaned into the window with a melting milkshake in front of you.

“Hey hun.” The waiter spoke coming closer, “Would you like a new shake?”


“No thanks.” You mumbled.

“I’ll take a strawberry one.”

You tensed up looking to see a matured version of the boy that followed you in your dreams. Still wearing that ridiculously endearing crown was Jughead. He had scruff on his face and a little more definition in his body but it was still lanky sardonic humoured Jughead Jones.

“Jughead.”

“Y/N.”

Each of you playing with your hands as the awkwardness set in. What do you say to the person you were once so close with? Hey seemed so…weak but it’s not like you can launch into your latest horror.

“How’ve you been?” You awkwardly asked. Nostalgia set in as Jughead swiped the cherry on your milkshake, something never change.

“Same old when your best friend comes back after abandoning you.” Jughead shrugged with an edge in his voice. You winced, “Especially when you don’t know they’re coming seeing as they changed their number.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No you’re not.” Jughead retorted leaning back, “But it’s not why I’m sitting with you. I want to know if your staying.”

“So you know where to avoid me?” You glared crossing your arms.


“No. So I can prepare to see you and not let it break me again.” Jughead returned, “Did you know Reggie’s coaching the football team? He lost his football scholarship after a gnarly knee injury his freshmen year.”


“No!” You gasped leaning forward, “What about Ronnie and Archie?”



“Together still.” Jughead rolled his eyes, “Archie told me they were thinking of having kids by next year. Their wedding was beautiful.”

“I couldn’t make it.” You admitted looking down at your hand.

“I know. It was opening week for your second play.” Jughead casually interjected as he ate the cherry from his recently delivered milkshake.

“You knew?” You gasped blinking at him.

“I went to your first play.” Jughead said leaning back, “Was going to say hi but you were busy.”

“Critics wanted-“

“No you were busy with what’s his face’s tongue in your throat.” Jughead sneered, “This was a mistake.”

Without a word you watched Jughead abandon his milkshake for the door and you made your second mistake. Not going after him.

You ran in Jughead multiple times the next week before he mysteriously disappeared for a month. You kept busy by staring at the second hand typewriter your father gifted you or helping Bella with her coffee shop. You had coffee with Veronica a few times also.

“You look gorgeous!” Ronnie exclaimed, “How are you not married!”

“Guess there hasn’t been time.”

“Or a certain raven haired man wasn’t in your life.” Ronnie sang sitting down into the chair. She was glowing still in that newlywed stage of her marriage.


“You look happy. I’m sorry I couldn’t be at your wedding.” You smiled at your old friend.


“I am.” Ronnie blushed looking down, “It’s okay you didn’t make it. You weren’t ready to see Jughead.”

“It’s stupid that I didn’t go to your wedding because I didn’t want to see how Jughead and Betty were.”

“They were over by then.” Ronnie said waving her hand.

“Bella mentioned that.” You whispered looking down, “What happened?”



“I think you leaving opened Jughead’s eyes to his feelings for you. Betty couldn’t deal with it and they broke up a month after you fled Riverdale. For little bit she..uh…went all dark no stars Betty again. Went to Stanford, met some guy and now has two kids in Boston.”

“Whoa.” You breathed, “I always thought they would get married.”

“Hm. Archie and I didn’t think so. I was always rooting for you and Jughead.” Ronnie shrugged taking a sip from her drink.

“Where is he?”

“Small book signing in Chicago and New York.”

You embarrassingly had each book that Jughead had gotten published in the years you hadn’t been in his life. There was one you wouldn’t touch though. It was something you would have never pegged Jughead to write about. It was a love story and you knew it was about Betty and it hurt too much to read that.

“Oh.” You mumbled.

“Gosh look at the time.” Ronnie said catching the eyes of someone coming in the door, “I totally forgot Archie and I have dinner plans.”

In a tornado of sophistication Ronnie strode out of the coffee shop your objections falling on deaf ears. It was barely half past one.

“You’re here.” Jughead sighed sitting down in the newly vacant seat.

“This was staged?!”

“Ronnie believes Archie and her planned me into coming here unbeknownst your were here too.” Jughead informed you, “They’re too predictable.”

“I thought you were ignoring me.”

“Once again. I don’t have your new number and by the time I wanted to find you I was being herded to Chicago.” Jughead retorted, “In fact when I broke up with Betty I drove all the way to New York to tell you I loved you but I saw something between you and that Ian guy.”

“You wanted to see me again after I broke your heart.” You marvelled as he blushed a very faint pink as he brushed it off with a scoff.

“Of course I did. I want to know everything about you Y/N.” He chortled goodheartedly, “So tell me everything since you’ve left Riverdale.”

And so you did.

You told him about how you struggled the first few years in New York to get your work onto stage while waitressing when you could. You told him how you met Ian and you were blind to what Ian was doing. You told him how you felt with your plays and how you had wanted to be published but Ian broke you down.

And he listened and maybe that was his second mistake.

In a span of two hours you relearnt everything about each other with that same spark reigniting between you two. Soon coffee turned into lunch dates and lunch dates turned into movie and takeout. It led to staying over and I love you’s. It also led to a regret you knew you would have for the rest of your life.

Six months following your relocation to Riverdale things got complicated. Your mother moved back along with your two other siblings. Anna brought your nephews after their father lost his rights to them. Dylan, like you, retreated after an epiphany got him thinking why he was in a job he hated.

It took time before your family healed and Jughead stood by your side as it happened with resolve to never leave. That’s why when a thick envelope came in the mail with your name you were both confused and elated.

A big publishing head in New York had resent your half finished manuscript back with good reviews and you were getting published.

“Who did this?” You spoke amid the celebratory hugs from your sisters and mother.


“You didn’t send it?” Anna asked equally confused. It seemed the only one that had an inkling was in fact your mother.

“Who knows you were writing-“


“Jughead.” Your voice broke as you said his name.

They awed over the fact that he believed so strongly he sent your manuscript in but you didn’t feel that same emotion.

Smiling at the Riverdale folks strolling past you finished placing the books into the piles on the tables outside before sighing. You had reopened the bookstore in the middle of town to bring imagination back into the same town. It was something you had loved growing up and wanted to give young children the same experience.

“Hey babe.” Jughead said pressing a kiss to your cheek. He had been in Toledo visiting his little sister Jellybean for the last week.

“Hey Jughead.” You murmured stepping away from him.

“What’s wrong?” He questioned looking to see you were looking anywhere but him.

“Did you send my manuscript in?”

“They want to publish it?” Jughead grinned placing his hands on your shoulders to combat his excitement.

“They do.” You sighed looking up at him with such heartbreak he was confused, “I don’t appreciate that you did that with out my approval.”



Jughead was now beyond confused because he thought you would be happy knowing that you were getting published. Something he knew that you didn’t believe you could do on your own.

“It’s just a manuscript.”



“You don’t understand. You didn’t let me decide about it Jughead. You took that right from me and that’s not okay. I spent seven years in New York living with that and when I got back to Riverdale I promised myself I would never let that happen.”


“I’m nothing like Ian, Y/N!” Jughead exclaimed shocked.

“I know but what you did is exactly what Ian did to me. He changed my plays by convincing me they needed to change. I didn’t get to decide what happened in my plays and it affected my career.”

“I’m sorry.”



“I am too.” You cried, “I’m sorry Jughead and I’m going to regret this the rest of my life but I can’t let the time I’ve spent refinding myself and leaving New York be wasted.”

It seemed like earth was just as upset about the break up as both Jughead and you were because it began to pour down. Raising a hand to Jughead’s cheek you pressed a kiss to his lips before heading inside your bookstore already regretting that you had done.

(gif from @wallflowerproduction on youtube via their account littlesociopath

But in the end placing yourself first after those years with Ian was needed.

Forever Tag List

@cityofsobbingfangirls @tas898 @barbidollash @trustnobodyshootfirst @winchesterfanfiction @deanwinchesterisamazing @oh-my-hecky-padalecki @padackles2010 @msimpala67 @deangirl5509 @heyitssilverwolf @therealme13posts @petlaufeyson @professionally-crazed @winterhurricane @tearsandbloodofmyenemies @blackwidow-romanoff @crazybarnes @marvelofcourse @takemetothefictionalworld @destiel67bellarke @ohmy-sammy @fightinthepain @vivabucky @waituntilthedustsettles @daydreaming1393 @cumonbucky @inhumans-of-shield @basicwhiskeyprincesss @soulfull-ofevans @spookass @glitterintheairblog @girl-with-wild-dreams @frickin-bats @darkestgrungeuniverse @shamvictoria11 @buckyappreciationsociety @sammysgirl1997 @fly-f0rever @archer-whovian-violinist @jenn0755 @anamarieswift2194 @unicornofdanger @ifyoudie @jealousbitxh @stormin-thru-glitter @sparklyaura @stilescstilinski @curlyxtomato @katshrev @its-sanaa-k @theoismydad @im-a-light-child @tmriddler @flirtswithdanger @divide-supermarketflowers @arkhamasylumpatient-blog1 @introverted-fandom-human @jennylj16 @potterandbucky @harleenq4life @runs-with-sciss0rs @superhero-lover101 @ridingmoxley

Riverdale Taglist

@n0average @ateliefloresdaprimavera @sgarrett49 @jarchiee @casismyguardianangel @supernovares @juggie-sprouse @an-enigmatic-avenger @leah-khaleesi @rax-writes @shameless-danni @rapunzxl @peetapansneverland @peetapansneverland @sebby-staan @katshrev @zachmantle @30inlovewiththecoco1 @semoremohhh @gilly-grantgustin-the-flash-glee @roses-are-bae @jackyfrost01 @cheytheredhead @my-baby-daryldixon @ladyfairenvale

[junker-town]

How do the 2020 rookie QBs compare to the legendary 2004 class?

Manning, Rivers and Roethlisberger were special. These guys are even better.

All you need to mention is “2004” when it comes to the NFL Draft, and football fans immediately know what you mean. The 2004 draft produced some of the best players of the last 20 years, but it was headlined and remember for the trio of Hall of Fame quarterbacks who indelibly changed the game.

Eli Manning, Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisbeger changed the fortunes of their respective franchises. Eli returned the Giants to the Super Bowl, winning two rings, including one of the most memorable upsets of all time. Roethlisberger won rings of his own, starting as early as his second season in the league. He was so impactful for the Steelers that he made people remember the dominant Pittsburgh teams of the 70s. Rivers, oft seen as the odd man out, might wind up being the best pure passer of the bunch, and while he languished on the Chargers for years, he was so good that he’ll likely be up there in the conversation with Dan Marino as the best quarterbacks to never win a Super Bowl.

Every few years we get a crop of quarterbacks that start the buzz of “is this 2004 again?” but, always there’s a let down. The idea of getting one transcendent quarterback in a draft is rare enough, hitting three might as well be a statistical impossibility. Now, just over midway into the 2020 season there’s an increasing chance that for the first time since Manning, Rivers and Roethlisberger hit the league that the new breed of NFL rookies could actually be that good, and that’s incredibly exciting.

It starts with Joe Burrow.

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images

It’s easy to forget that Burrow really wasn’t seen as “the prize” at quarterback until college football season was nearly over. Up to that point everyone was talking about Tua Tagovailoa, and Tua alone. Then Burrow won the Heisman, led LSU to a national championship, and quickly became the favorite for No. 1. Coaches sang his praises, saying he was NFL-ready, and the marketing was perfect for Cincinnati to bring a local Ohio guy back home and have him lead the franchise.

However, there was still doubt. How much of his astounding season at LSU was product of Burrow’s ability, and how much was a phenomenal supporting cast? Was the quarterback the catalyst for success, or an NFL caliber coaching staff outsmarting the rest of the game?

In the end most people seemed to settle on the idea that Burrow would be a good quarterback, and had the right demeanor for the game — but perhaps a “safe” choice, that wouldn’t really take over the NFL. So far, he’s proved everyone wrong.

Burrow has been, arguably, the best rookie quarterback we have ever seen. In eight games he’s on pace not only to smash records as a rookie quarterback, but put him firmly entrenched among the best quarterbacks in the league.

Joe Burrow’s 2020 stats: 67% CMP, 2,272 yds, 11 TD, 5 INT — 91.4 QB rating 16 start projection: 67% CMP, 4,544 yds, 22 TD, 10 INT — 91.4 QB rating

This would amount to more passing yards that any season in Eli Manning’s career, bar one — and a QB rating on the year that Manning only surpassed five times. When it comes to No. 1 overall picks it’s clear Burrow is worthy of the hype.

Tua Tagovailoa has bounced back from injury.

Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images

It’s understandable why the Bengals weren’t comfortable rolling the dice on Tua, even though a lot of people believed they should have. After sustaining a devastating hip injury, there were questions whether the Alabama QB could ever really bounce back and return to himself. Ultimately the Dolphins decided the risk was worth it, and got who many believed was the best quarterback in the draft with the 5th overall pick.

Miami was smart in easing Tagovailoa into the NFL. Deep down they knew that competing in 2020 probably wasn’t in the cards, so they turned the reigns over to Ryan Fitzpatrick to start the season.

Now, the team has been handed to Tua, and he’s been amazing so far. It’s critical to remember that while Burrow is playing excellently, he also has a much, much better cast of receivers in Cincinnati that Miami does. Nonetheless, we are seeing the second incredible quarterback out of the 2020 draft blossoming, and proving that he too can make a huge impact on the league.

Tua Tagovailoa’s 2020 stats: 65% CMP, 350 yds, 3 TD, 0 INT — 103.8 QB rating 16 start projection: 64% CMP, 2,728 yds, 24 TD, 0 INT — 103.8 QB rating

Yes, this is a small sample size — but his talent is undeniable.

Justin Herbert is the dark horse blowing away expectations.

Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

When it comes to the trio of quarterbacks Justin Herbert was seen as the “risk.” There was plenty to love about how he played at Oregon, but also concerns whether he could handle the pressure and speed of the NFL. Selected 6th overall, it was initially planned to have Herbert learn behind Tyrod Taylor. Then Herbert’s number was called early when a team doctor pierced Taylor’s lung with a needle, because 2020 is bananas.

Expectations were measured to start, but it quickly became clear that Herbert wasn’t just a good NFL rookie, but he was fully capable of playing amazing football against excellent opponents and destroyed the doubters in the process. There’s very little to dislike about his game, and while the Chargers have a terrible record this season, it’s about how they’re losing — not that they are losing games. They’re keeping games close, and on any given week Los Angeles has a chance to win. Now they can build around the rookie and take the next step.

Justin Herbert’s 2020 stats: 67.3% CMP, 2,146 yds, 17 TD, 5 INT — 107.4 QB rating 16 start projection: 67.3% CMP, 4,905 yds, 34 TD, 10 INT — 107.4 QB rating

Nobody could have predicted just how sensational Herbert has been, and how lucky the Chargers have been in the process. Remember when the Colts parted ways with Peyton Manning only to have Andrew Luck land in their laps? Moving from Philip Rivers to Herbert is a similar scenario, but with considerably more risk involved.

So, how do the trios really compare?

This takes a little bit of projection, and there are different factors at play. Eli Manning and ben Roethlisberger were thrown in to play from the jump, while Rivers sat behind Drew Brees for two seasons. So this is based on projecting the first 16 starts of each quarterback’s career.

2004 trio (Manning, Rivers, Roethlisberger): 58.8% CMP, 8,999 yds, 57 TD, 44 INT — 81.2 QB rating 2020 trio (Burrow, Tagovailoa, Herbert): 66.1% CMP, 12,177 yds, 80 TD, 20 INT — 100.9 QB rating

The league has changed a lot since 2004, but we are witnessing the seemingly impossible becomes reality. The group of 2020 first round quarterbacks are blowing the vaunted 2004 group out of the water. We now wait to see whether this group has the sustained success the old guard did, or whether this is a flash in the pan. However, with everything we know right now, we are witnessing the greatest group of new QBs to ever enter the NFL. All three have franchise potential. Each is giving their team hope.

In 10 years we might no longer be talking about the 2004 draft, instead asking “Can any class live up to the passers from 2020?” That’s wild to think about.

[jugxbets]

Archie's Little Sister: Chapter One

A/N: this is an AU where Archie has a little sister. they will be a year apart. i plan on making this a series so i’m also gonna be making things up as i go. I’m gonna start from the very first episode of Riverdale. the only things i’ll mention is that she’s going to be a lot like him and she’s going to be a bit of a bitch. there will be smut eventually. the fic will mostly be revolved around her and Archie. i’ve noticed how most of the characters in Riverdale have such elegant and sophisticated names but have nicknames within those names like Archie = Archibald, Reggie = Reginald, Betty = Elizabeth, etc. so i decided to give her a name sort of like that. i hope you all enjoy and start sending in requests!

Warnings: swearing, maybe?

Summary: Alexandria Andrews, mostly known as Alex, has always been overshadowed by her brother, Archie. She was always compared to him and she would let it slide. But once she attends Riverdale High, she thought she would make it known that she is her own person and not just “Archie’s Little Sister.”

*the things that happened with Jason Blossom’s murder still happen. everything else still happens as far as i’m concerned with myself. i might be changing a couple of things, nothing big. i’m just adding another character and making it a bit more interesting.*

Actress to visualize: a young Lily Collins.

——————————————————————————

“The River’s Edge”

Tomorrow will be Alex’s first day of high school. Riverdale High.

She rolled her eyes at the thought of going to the same school as her brother, Archie.

She was always overshadowed by him. It never really bothered her, she just hated when people compared them. She always thought of herself as someone better than him.

She loved Archie and she always would. They will always be protective of each other. She was just annoyed by how “perfect” people thought he was.

In middle school, she was already known as “Archie’s little sister” and she knew it would be the same in High school. She hated the phrase because people didn’t think of her as anything more than that.

At least she had people to hang out with though. Betty, Jughead and Kevin. She was closest to them. She grew up with them like Archie did. She met Kevin through Betty at Pop’s. There were other people she knew that went to Riverdale High but they weren’t important.

Except for Jason. Alex and Jason had a fling type-of-thing during the summer before his mysterious death. Jason hurt Alex too many times for her to feel any kind of sympathy when she heard about the accident. She always knew he had a girlfriend but Jason always lied to her. Then it was confirmed that it was Polly by Betty. She’s hated Polly ever since. Her sadistic side comes out when she thinks about her being in a psych ward. That’s what the rumors were saying anyway. She laughs about it when she’s alone. Jason was older, sure, but that didn’t bother her. He was beautiful to her. He was the literal definition of a nightmare dressed like a day dream.

She dreaded her very first day of high school.

She was downstairs with her father, Fred preparing dinner when Archie decided to head out.

“Hey, dad, i’m going to Pop’s with Betty for a milkshake.” Archie said, as he walked into the kitchen while putting on his hoodie.

“What about dinner?” Fred asked.

“Save me a plate?” Archie shrugged.

“No, if you wanna eat, eat now or starve.” Alex responded coldly.

Fred gestured for him to head out. “I’ll save you a plate, just go.”

Archie smiled and headed for the door.

Alex scoffed. “Of course.”

“Hey,” Fred called out before Archie left. He turned around to face his dad.

“Why don’t you, uh, take crabby pants with you?” Fred suggested.

Alex’s face scrunched up. “Uh, i’m not third wheeling. Thanks, but no thanks.”

She continued to dice the onions.

Fred raised his brows at Archie, as if he was telling him to convince her. Archie sighed and went along with it.

“Oh, come on, Alex.” Archie huffed.

“You don’t want to have to tell your kids you spent your whole adolescence staying in with dad, do you?” He continued.

She rolled her eyes. “Staying in with dad isn’t so bad.”

“But fine.” She sighed. “If you insist.”

Archie chuckled.

She grabbed a hoodie of her own and headed out with Archie.

“We won’t be too late, dad.” Archie assured Fred as they walked out the door.

They decided to walk to Pop’s. It wasn’t that far anyway.

They made it there and they saw that Betty was already there, sitting in their usual booth.

She greeted them with a smile.

Betty got up from the booth so Alex can slide into the other side while Archie slid into the front of them.

Betty gave him a questioning look. She didn’t mind Alex. They were good friends. Betty was the only girl Alex was nice to. It’s just that she finally wanted to tell Archie how she felt tonight and she kind of wanted to do it alone.

“Uh, my dad made me bring her.” Archie answered to her look.

She gave an understanding nod.

Alex scoffed.

“If you want, I can go to a different booth.” She said, ready to climb out of the one she was in.

Betty held her back.

“No! No, it’s fine, you know I don’t mind hanging out with the both of you.” She said with a smile.

“Okay.” Alex said, sounding unsure.

“So, what was the highlight?” Archie asked, sparking up a conversation.

“Of my internship?” Betty asked to make sure. “The Toni Morrison book release party I organized, by far.” She smiled as she thought about it

She started gushing about Toni Morrison while Alex tuned them out. She didn’t want to be here with them but Archie was right. She didn’t want to tell her kids in the future that she had no social life.

“How was working for your dad?” Betty asked both of them.

“It was.. pouring concrete, every day, all day long.” He said as he dreaded doing it again. “Alex hated it.” He chuckled.

“Yeah, but I suppose we do have dad to thank for our abs.” She smirked. “I didn’t get as buff as Archie, obviously, but hey, I got some work done as well. Never again though.” She groaned.

Betty laughed.

Then Archie started talking about his poems.

Betty mentions that he doesn’t even like reading poetry.

Archie clarifies and says they’re song lyrics.

“Oh, we’re telling her about that, are we?” Alex smirked as she sipped on her vanilla milkshake.

Betty looked at Archie confused. He nodded and smiled.

Archie continued. “working on them made me feel like..”

“What, Archie?” Betty was just dying to know.

It was then Archie’s turn to gush over his music.

Again, Alex tuned them out.

But then she saw something sparkle in Betty’s eye when she watched him talk about his passion.

She looked mesmerized.

That was Alex’s thing. Observing people. Reading them.

“Music.” Archie blurted out. “Starting this year, tomorrow.” He smiled.

“Amazing!” Betty returned the smile.

“Will you ask Ms. Grundy to tutor you?” Betty asked.

Archie’s mood shifted a bit. “I’m not sure, maybe.”

“What about football?” Betty continued with her questions. “Can you do both?”

“I’ll try out, at least.” Archie responded to her questions as fast as they came.

“Well, have you told your dad?” Betty kept the questions coming, causing Alex’s head to spin.

“No,” Archie said a bit agitated.

Betty nodded. Maybe she overdid it with the questions.

“Until I’ve got things more figured out, you and Alex are the only people I’m telling, okay?” He assured her.

She looked at Alex.

“I already knew. I’ve been helping out.” Alex shrugged.

She nodded and smiled.

“Well, I’d love to hear them sometime. Your songs.”

“Yeah, I’m finishing a couple of demos tonight.” He said as he looked at Alex. “With the help of my dear sibling, of course.”

“Great. Also..” Betty began. She got nervous. “I’ve been thinking..”

“Hold on, I’ll be back.” He said as he slid of the booth and into the bathroom.

“Uh, okay..” Betty trailed off as she frowned.

“Were you about to tell him what I think you want to tell him?” Alex asked.

Betty groaned. “Ugh, yes but now I think I wanna back out. Maybe it’s not meant to be.” She said as mixed her milkshake around with her straw and sipped on it.

“You’ve gotta talk to him. I can tell you really like him. You guys are perfect for each other.” Alex tried convincing Betty not to back out.

“What if he doesn’t like me back?” Betty asked, very unsure about how he would react or what he would say.

“There’s only one way to find out.” Alex shrugged as she smirked. “I can leave if you want.”

“No, stay, I could use the moral support.” Betty half smiled.

Alex nodded. “Well, you’ve got my blessing.”

Betty smiled as she took a deep breath while trying to regain the same mentality she had a minute ago.

Archie came out moments later.

“Sorry, Betty, you can continue.” Archie said as he slid back into the booth.

Alex sipped on her milkshake as she watched Betty.

“Well it’s just that, I’ve been thinking about us, Archie, and our friendship, and how’s it’s time we..”

Archie unintentionally tuned her out when he a dark haired girl caught his attention when she walked into Pop’s.

He looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Stunned by this mysterious raven-haired girl.

Betty tried to continue what she was saying but she noticed Archie’s attention was somewhere else.

Alex had her back. She snapped her fingers in his face.

“Earth to moron!” Alex said as she kept snapping.

She gave up as she realized she wasn’t going to get through to him.

Then she and Betty both turned around to see what he was so stunned by.

Betty looked back to him with a frown while Alex was still watching her.

“I called in an order, for Lodge?” She asked Pop.

He told her the order was almost ready but she had to wait.

She smiled when he left to get her order. Then she saw them.

“Hi.” She greeted with a smile.

Archie was the first one to say hi back. A little too quick if you ask Alex or Betty.

She asked how the onion rings were here. Archie said ‘so good’ which was a bit of an overstatement since Alex always thought they were too greasy. She rolled her eyes at how he was looking at her.

Then she asked for some onion rings as well with her order.

“Thanks.” She said, smiling, once again.

Alex couldn’t read her. It frustrated her a bit.

“My mom and i just moved here, so..” the girl went on to say.

“From where?” Archie asked.

“New York.” She responded.

“Wow.” Archie said, impressed.

“There are way better places in the world, Archie. New York isn’t really all that impressive.” Alex snapped.

The dark-haired girl raised a brow. “She’s right, I suppose.”

Betty was frowning ever since the mysterious girl sparked up a conversation.

“Do you guys go to Riverdale?” The girl asked.

“We do. Both of us. Together.” Betty answered.

“Actually, Alex, here, is starting her very first day tomorrow. She’s a freshman.” Archie said.

“You didn’t have to say that.” Alex glared at him.

“We’re sophomores.” Archie ignored her, as he pointed to Betty.

Betty gave her a smile the best she could.

“Me too.” The girl said uncheerfully. “I’m filled with dread.”

“Why is that?” Archie asked as he chuckled.

“Are you guys familiar with the works of Truman Capote?” The girl asked the group.

“The novelist?” Alex asked, uninterested.

Archie and Betty both nodded.

“I’m Breakfast at Tiffany’s, but this place is strictly In Cold Blood.” She said.

Archie laughed a little too hard at her joke. Betty watched him as if she knew that if she had made the joke, he wouldn’t have laughed that hard.

Alex scoffed at Archie’s reaction. Idiot. was all that she can think about it.

“Veronica Lodge.” The girl finally introduced herself.

“Archie Andrews.” He said as he shook her hand.

Betty was looking at him in shock because of the way he was acting.

“Uh, this is Betty Cooper and that over there,” he said, pointing at the other side of the booth. “Is my evil little sister, Alex.” He chuckled.

Veronica giggled.

Alex glared at him. “I think we’re capable of introducing ourselves, Arch.” She hissed.

He ignored her.

“Wait, are you..” Veronica trailed off, taking to Betty.

“Supposed to give you your tour tomorrow? Yes.” Betty finished and answered her question for her.

They both smiled awkwardly.

“I’m your peer mentor.” Betty said looking down as she chuckled.

“Do you want to join us?” Archie invited her.

Both of Betty and Alex’s eyes widened.

“She’s seems pretty busy, Arch.” Alex began.

“Hey, maybe we can un-fill you with dread.” He said, ignoring his sister once again.

Veronica eventually got the hint that neither Betty or Alex wanted her there.

“My mom’s waiting for me.” She forced a chuckle.

Archie gave her an understanding nod.

“But, to be continued.” Veronica said as she smiled.

She walked away.

“Yeah.” Archie responded quietly.

His full attention went back to Betty. He caught himself still smiling but then went back to the mood he was in earlier.

“What were you saying?” Archie asked, trying to get back on topic.

“Nothing.” Betty smiled the best she could but Alex knew she was frowning deep down.

Alex felt bad but Betty had an advantage to being good friends with his little sister. She can talk him up about Betty.

They all talked a little more amongst each other. Then they all went home.

Archie and Alex got to finishing up the demos he was talking about to Betty before they went to sleep.

It was a little bit over midnight and Alex couldn’t sleep. She was nervous about her first day. She knew Cheryl would give her a hard time and clearly, she wouldn’t let herself but she just knows she’s not going to be in the mood for it.

Ever since the “accident” happened, everyone says she’s the bitchiest she’s ever been. That’s not what Alex was worried about. She wondered how she was going to face Cheryl after knowing she and her brother were involved. Alex assumed Cheryl knew because, well, they were twins and she always thought they told each other everything.

No one can ever know. You have to take this to your grave, Alex. She thought to herself.

She eventually fell asleep thinking about it.

——————————————————————————

Alex’s alarm went off. Too early, she thought. But she had to wake up earlier than everyone else so she wasn’t late.

She got up and decided to go into the shower. She took her time since she knew no one would be up until a few more hours.

She got out and realized she hadn’t picked out an outfit to wear the night before.

She shrugged and decided to do her hair and makeup in her towel.

She started with her hair. She blow dried it and brushed it out. She always hated that Archie got their mom’s red hair. She thought red locks would suit her. Instead, she got stuck with Fred’s hair color. She didn’t mind being a brunette but she will always wish for red hair.

She decided not to do anything else with her hair since it naturally dried wavy.

She moved on to makeup. She always went light on it. She put on her usual base which was foundation. She moved onto her thick, full brows. She never really needed to shade them in but she did anyway. She put on a bit of blush and mascara to finish it all off.

She looked at herself in her tall mirror with just her royal blue bra and panties. She felt confident for once.

She was insecure about herself in middle school but ever since she helped Archie and her dad out at the construction site, she built some muscle. Her abs were her absolute favorite.

She heard Archie’s alarm go off in the other room. It reminded her to stop looking at herself and put some clothes on. She heard him get up and into the shower.

She started looking for an outfit. She sighed at the thought of her knowing how ugly it was about to get for her room, in search of a good outfit.

She decided to go with a crop tank top and some black ripped jeans with her Doc Martens. She was never the preppy type. Not like Kevin and Betty.

To accessorize, she put on a velvet choker and some skull earrings. She wanted to be extra edgy today, especially since Archie hated it.

She almost went as far as adding black liner but she decided not to. She just woke a dark lipstick. Her favorite from Covergirl. She got her books and bag ready.

She was downstairs giving Vegas breakfast, which was normal dog food in the morning.

“Archie, hurry up! We’re gonna be late!” Alex called out to him as she pet their dog.

Archie was racing up and down the stairs. They were definitely gonna be late.

“Hey, dad, Alex,” Archie called out as he pulled out his phone to check the time. “First day of school and we’re already late.”

“We wouldn’t have been if you had your shit together last night!” Alex called back out.

“Language!” Fred scolded in a sing-sing voice, as he was pouring coffee into his mug.

Archie went to the kitchen table to put his books in his bag. He said hi to Vegas on his way.

Alex rolled her eyes.

“Hey, you guys, uh, stopping by the site later?” He asked Archie.

Archie looked at Alex.

“Uh, I’m not.” She scoffed. “I hated it but maybe next summer, dad.”

He nodded and looked at Archie for a response.

Archie sighed. “Dad, it’s my first day.”

“Oh, we gotta get you going to the office, so next summer you’re not on the crew.” Fred responded.

“Well, I can’t. I’ve got football tryouts.” He said as he shoved his books in his bag.

Fred smiled. It wasn’t a good smile but it wasn’t a bad one either. They can never tell.

“Or is that not okay?” Archie carefully asked.

“No, it’s, uh, it’s okay. Good luck.” Fred said, leaving Archie unconvinced.

“Greaaaat, can we go now?” Alex asked with an attitude.

“Yes, we should head out now.” Archie said when he checked his phone again.

“Good luck to you, too, sweetie.” He gave her a peck on the top of her head. “I don’t suppose you’re trying out for the cheer team, huh?” Fred teased.

“Haha, very funny, dad.” Alex sarcastically responded.

They began to walk towards the door.

“Be nice.” Fred called out to Alex.

“I’m always nice.” Alex’s face scrunched up.

“Who’s the funny one now?” Fred teased.

She glanced at him to glare at him for a second but then they both left.

They started walking.

“Ugh, why do we have to walk?” Alex complained as she groaned.

“Because it’s just a few blocks away?” Archie scoffed. “Jesus, you complain about everything.”

“Are you trying to pick a fight with me?” Alex asked. “Because it’s way too early for that.”

“No,” Archie denied. “But i could do without your complaints.”

“Oh, well, that’s too bad.” She said as she skipped. “What are little sisters for?”

He forced a chuckle.

“Hey, you brought a sweater, right?” Archie asked as he eyed her outfit.

“Uh, no, it’s not cold.” She scoffed.

It was 53 degrees.

“Uh, it might not be too cold but it is pretty chilly.” Archie said. “And you’re showing too much skin, anyway.”

He took his book bag off and looked for the hoodie he shoved in there, along with his books. He took it out and offered it to her.

“Uh, no, thanks. Since when do you care about what I wear, anyway?” Her brows furrow.

“Since I found out that there are a lot of horny boys in high school.” He said, shoving the hoodie in her face.

“Oh, no! Let me hide my shoulders because God knows it’ll drive the boys crazy!” Alex sarcastically said as she clutched her shoulders dramatically.

Archie glared at her and shoved the hoodie in her face one more time. “Not your shoulders, Smartass. Your stomach.”

She laughed.

Finally she took it. “I’m not wearing it.” She shrugged.

“You will when you get dress coded.” Archie said with a smirk.

“We’ll see about that.” She smirked right back.

They laughed.

“So, what did you think about that Veronica girl?” Alex asked as she narrowed her eyes.

“Uh, i thought she seemed cool. And pretty.” He stammered. “You?”

“Prettier than Betty?” She asked, raising an eyebrow, definitely crossing a line. She avoided his question.

“What kind of a question is that?” Archie’s face scrunched up.

Alex shrugged.

“I think they’re both equally beautiful.”

“Hm.” Alex responded. “I don’t believe you.”

Archie scoffed. “Well, what do you think of her?”

She smacked her lips. “I think she’s a bitch.”

Archie’s eyes widened. “God, can’t you be nice for just one second?”

“I am nice, Arch.” She defended herself. “And it’s the truth. My bitch radar was going off like crazy. I know a bitch when I see one.”

“Does it go off when you look at yourself in the mirror?” Archie joked, and laughed.

Alex mocked his laugh as she nudged him. “Haha, hilarious.”

“You heard about her dad?” Alex asked with a grin on her face.

“What about her dad?” Archie asked with his brows furrowed.

“He’s in prison. For fraud. And embezzlement. That’s why they moved here.” She said, with the grin still on her face. “To.. ‘start a new life.’” She motioned her hands with quotation marks.

“How do you even know?”

“I do my research, Archie.” She responded.

“Damn.. that must be tough.”

Alex rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, okay.” She mocked her sympathy. “Still not as bad as mom leaving us, if that’s what you were thinking.”

“It wasn’t.” His face scrunched up again.

“Well, good. Because her father got locked up. He was forced to leave her and her mom. Our mother, left, on her own free will. Not giving a shit, not looking back.” She said coldly.

He sighed heavily.

“I know you’re still mad at her, but, come on, Alex. I think you’ve held the grudge for long enough.” Archie tried reasoning with her.

“Sure doesn’t feel like it.” Alex rolled her eyes.

They arrived at school.

Archie went straight to his locker. Alex followed. He promised her he would show her around. She was going to ask Betty, but she didn’t really want to hear the history of Riverdale High and all of the other unnecessary stuff.

He was going over some song lyrics with her. He told her he was going to try to talk to Josie, from Josie and the Pussycats, to see if they would sing one of his songs.

“Your hand writing is sloppy.” Alex pointed out.

“So is yours.” Archie returned the insult.

She scoffed.

Then Reggie came up out of nowhere.

“Bro, you are ready for football.” He said, looking at his upper body. “I’m not kidding, dude. You got ripped.”

He seemed very shocked.

Reggie went on about how buff Archie was.

He didn’t even notice Alex was there.

Again, being overshadowed by her brother, like always. She was use to it by now but she wanted it to be different this time.

“Taking some T?” Reggie then asked.

She snickered. Archie glared at her.

Then they started walking. She followed.

Reggie then starting asking what he was taking.

“It’s from working construction, Reg.” Archie laughed as he put his letterman jacket on.

“Oh yeah, yeah, that’s right— Yo, Moose!” Reggie called out. Moose started walking with them.

Alex was annoyed by how loud he thought he needed to be.

“So, Archie, you gonna show me around?” She said instead of asking, like she was reminding him.

“Oh, yeah. Hey, I gotta show my little sister around, I’ll catch up with you later.” He tried walking off.

“Whoa, what?” Reggie asked, surprised, while he checked Alex out.

“That’s Alex? Holy shit! And i thought Archie grew up.” He laughed with Moose.

“I can show you around instead, babe.” Reggie winked.

Alex cringed at his lame attempt to flirt. Archie wasn’t having it.

“Knock it off, man.” Archie said, annoyed. Reggie and Moose laughed once again.

“Yo, be honest with me..” Reggie paused for a bit. “You work on any houses? Any private homes?”

They kept walking and faster. Alex followed, trying to keep up.

“Yeah, a couple.” Archie answered.

“Did you tap some cougar ass this summer?” Reggie shouted.

A look of disgust appeared in Alex’s face.

“Okay, you know what, I’ll just ask Betty. Goodbye.” She said, walking away.

“Hey, call me later, sweetie.” Reggie said to Alex as he winked again.

Archie playfully smacked Reggie’s chest.

She laughed.

“You know what, I think that’s more a fantasy from your wank-bank, Reggie.” Archie said as he walked off as well. “I’ll catch you guys soon.”

“Yeah, so is your sister now, Andrews!” Reggie called out.

Archie flipped him off. Both Moose and Reggie laughed.

Alex went around looking for Betty desperately. She knew she was going to be late if she didn’t find her soon.

She found her when she was introducing Kevin to Veronica.

“Hey, Betty!” She called out from the other end of the hall.

She looked at her with a smile.

“Hey, Alex, everything okay?” She bit her bottom lip.

“Yeah, i was wondering if you would give me a tour as well. Archie suddenly got busy..” she shrugged.

“Yeah, sure, you remember Veronica?” Betty said, trying to get her off her back.

“Archie’s little sister, right?” Veronica asked Alex

The phrase that grinds Alex’s gears.

“Yeah, hi.” Alex said uninterested and quick.

Veronica’s facial expression went straight. She looked at Betty. Betty shrugged.

“Hey, Kevin. It’s been a while.” Alex smiled.

“Hi, Alex.” He smiled back.

“Thank god, you’re gay, Kevin. Let’s be best friends.” She said with a grin on her face, purposely interrupting them.

He smiled awkwardly.

Alex glared at her.

“Is it true what they say about your dad?” Kevin asked, shamelessly.

Alex tried to hold back a laugh except she wasn’t really trying. Betty couldn’t believe he actually asked her about it.

Veronica’s mood shifted.

“That he’s the devil incarnate?” She asked, with a tone in her voice that wasn’t so giddy anymore. “I stand by my father.”

Alex raised her brows and chuckled.

“Does everyone here know?” She asked, as she crossed her arms.

“Well, he’s all over the news sooo, what do you think?” Alex responded.

Her smart comments never got her anywhere.

“Wonderful. Ten minutes in and I’m already Blue Jasmine of Riverdale High.” She said walking off.

Betty rolled her eyes at Kevin, causing him to question her. Then they followed.

“Oh and of course there’s a back-to-school-semi formal dance this weekend.” Betty continued with her tour.

“That’s so lame.” Alex scoffed.

“Oh!” Veronica interrupts once again.

She pulled Betty back so she can see Veronica’s view.

“There’s the hottie we were with last night.” Veronica smiled.

“The red headed Ansel Elgort.” She continued.

Alex snorted. “That’s disrespectful. To Ansel.”

Kevin giggled. Betty wasn’t into the whole thing but she knew she had to play nice.

They all looked at him. He looked like he just got rejected. He probably didn’t get through to the Pussycats, Alex thought.

“Is he your boyfriend?” Veronica asked.

“No, he’s straight.”

“No, we’re just friends.”

“No, he’s my brother.”

The three of them say at the same time. Veronica looked at all of them. They smiled awkwardly.

“In that case, mind putting in a word?” Veronica asked Betty. “I’ve tried every flavor of boy but orange.”

Alex’s face scrunched up.

“Why the hell is everyone in here so horny?” She asked. Betty chuckled and shrugged.

“Actually, to clarify..” Kevin began. “Betty and Archie aren’t dating, but they are endgame.”

“Yeah, and i already gave her my blessing.” Alex joined with a fake smile.

Betty was sort of quiet while they explained.

Veronica wasn’t exactly disappointed but she wasn’t happy either.

“You should ask him to the semi formal then.” Veronica suggested to Betty.

“Oh, you definitely should! He’d never say no to you.” Alex said.

“She should, but I heard it might be getting cancelled.” Kevin said. “Because of what happened to Jason. They’re gonna tell us at the assembly.”

Betty nodded. Alex’s whole face went blank.

“Who’s Jason and what happened to him?” Veronica asked uninterested.

They all stared at Veronica.

“You’ve got lots to learn, new girl. And i don’t mean academically.” Alex smirked.

Betty continued the tour. She told Alex where all of her classes were so she wouldn’t be late. She wasn’t exactly excused for a tour like Veronica was.

It was time for the assembly. Everyone was at the gym, which was huge.

It started with Cheryl’s speech. She still looked the same, Alex thought. She looked meaner as well.

She went on about how many of us were lucky enough to have known Jason personally.

Alex wouldn’t say lucky. He was a player who broke her heart.

He was and always will be my soul mate.

That’s a weird thing to say about a sibling, Alex thought. Whatever floats her boat, she shrugged.

Alex was surprised that her little speech wasn’t depressing. In fact, she stopped the semi formal from getting canceled. Everyone cheered.

Alex looked around the bleachers to see where Archie was. When she did, she saw him eyeing Ms. Grundy. She eyed him right back. She didn’t think too much about it and her attention was back on Cheryl.

The assembly was over moments later. Alex tried to look for her next class but she got lost. She couldn’t find Betty anywhere.

She saw Archie at the bottom of the stairs talking to Ms. Grundy.

She walked towards them to ask Archie for help.

“During my office hours. My official office hours.” Grundy said, then skittishly walked off.

That was the only thing Alex heard.

“What was that about?” Alex asked Archie.

“Nothing.” He sighed.

“How’s your first day so far?” He asked, changing the subject.

“It’s greaaaat.” She sarcastically responded.

He laughed.

“I don’t know where my Algebra class is.” She groaned.

Archie smiled. “Come on. I’ll take you.”

She followed him.

The rest of the day went on. So far, everything was going smoothly. Alex was a bit anti social so she didn’t really make friends.

It was lunch time. Archie let her sit with him and his friends, who were also Alex’s friends, like the nice big brother that he is.

Alex saw Veronica struggle to find anywhere to sit while Archie showed the others one of his songs.

Betty was smiling at him. She was the only one that seemed to be into it.

“Can I join?” Veronica appeared.

Alex rolled her eyes.

Archie closed his laptop.

“Yeah.” Betty said.

“What are we doing?” Veronica asked as she sat down in front of Betty.

“Listening to one of Archie’s songs.” Betty said as she smiled and nudged him.

He smiled.

“I thought we were gonna have to pretend to like it, but it’s actually really good.” Kevin said, impressed.

“Wait, that was you singing?” Veronica joined on the conversation. “Something you wrote?”

“Yeah,” Archie said. “Alex helped me record and write. It’s rough.” He admitted.

“Your doing.” Alex clarified.

“No, it’s great!” Betty insisted.

“It’s incredible, actually, the little snippet I heard.” Veronica admitted.

Alex went back to eating her food, trying to tune Veronica out.

“Is that your thing? Music?” Veronica asked, flirtatiously.

Betty got uncomfortable. Kevin sighed. Alex scoffed.

“Are you doing something with that?” Veronica continued as she bat her eyelashes.

Archie nodded. “Yeah, that’s the plan.”

“So how’s your first day going? Good?” Archie asked.

“Not to be a complete narcissist, but I thought people would be more…” she trailed off.

“Obsessed with you?” Kevin finished for her.

Veronica smiled as she looked down.

“Any other year, you’d be trending number one, for sure.” Kevin continued. “This year, though, it’s all about Cheryl trying to win the Best Supporting Psycho Oscar for her role as Riverdale High’s bereaved Red Widow.”

Alex saw Cheryl approaching them from the corner of her eye while Kevin was talking. She wasn’t scared of her but she got nervous. She hated herself for overreacting. She was sure that she knew.

“Hey, i should go. I got that meeting with Grundy and then football tryouts, so.” Archie said as he got his book bag.

He gave a small hug to Alex. She smiled.

“You play football too? What don’t you do?” Veronica asked, surprised.

Then Archie left.

“Before you ask, Blue Jasmin, no she has not invited him to the dance yet…” Kevin aggressively said.

“I’ve been trying to get her to all day but..” Alex trailed off as she groaned.

“Not yet, and don’t talk about Archie!” Betty whispered harshly.

When Cheryl came to their table to talk to Veronica, they all understood why.

As soon as Cheryl came, Alex tuned her out. She introduced herself and asked to sit.

She sat down and pushed Betty to make space for herself causing Betty to push Alex. Her face scrunched up.

Betty apologized.

“So, what are you four hens gossiping about?” Cheryl began.

She paused when her eyes landed on Alex.

“Are you new here too?” Cheryl narrowed her eyes.

Alex froze. “I’m a freshman.”

Cheryl gasped. “You’re quite ripped for a youngster. What’s your secret?”

Cheryl’s kindness was an act and she knew it.

“I worked with my dad and my brother at his construction site all summer. Archie is my brother.” Alex said.

“What? You’re Alex? Damn, you got hot.” Cheryl said, very impressed.

Alex hated the fact that people were surprised about her transformation. It wasn’t a big deal.

“Anyway,” Cheryl continued. “Are you guys talking about Archie’s Edwin-Raquel emergence from the chrysalis of puberty?” She smiled deviously.

Alex scoffed.

Betty shook her head when Veronica looked at her.

“Extracurriculars.” Veronica changed the subject. “Weatherbee wants me to sign up for a few.” She continued, bored.

“Cheerleading.” Cheryl suggested with a smile. “You must! You and Alex!”

“Yeah, I’m not really into that.” Alex began.

“You never know..” Cheryl insisted.

Alex shook her head.

“I’m senior captain of the River Vixens.” She said with a smile as she flipped her hair.

“Is cheerleading still a thing?” Kevin asked, provoking her.

“Is being the Gay Best Friend still a thing?” Cheryl hissed.

Alex’s eyes widened. Her mood shifts quicker than her own, she thought.

Cheryl and Veronica continued their cheer talk. Apparently, Veronica was a cheerleader in New York. She bragged about how she always sat at the top of the pyramid.

Alex was annoyed.

“Im in.” Veronica finally said. “Betty, Alex, come on, you guys are trying out, too.”

Alex shook her head and furrowed her brows. Betty smiled and looked at Cheryl as she continued to eat.

“Of course, anyone’s welcome to try out,” Cheryl said with another one of her fake smiles. “But Betty’s already got so much on her plate right now” she said as she eyes her plate of food. “And being a Vixen is kind of a full time thing but open to all!” She insisted.

She gets up. “Oh, and I’m hoping you’ll change your mind, Alex. We could use someone like you. You’re fit, pretty, and I can sense your bitchy attitude. You’ve got what it takes.”

Alex thought about it but then shook her head once more.

Cheryl shrugged then told them to follow her on twitter and that she would do the same.

She gave them her username. None of them were really going to do it. She walked off.

“Okay, go ahead and hate on cheerleading, but if hipster Prince Harry..” Veronica began.

Betty cut her off.

“I’d love to be a cheerleader.” Betty admitted. “It would look great on my college applications. But last year, when I tried out, Cheryl said I was too fat.”

“What?” Alex’s brows furrowed. “Who the hell does she think she is?”

“No, it’s okay. I wasn’t bothered by it as much as you would think.” Betty shrugged.

“Too season 5 Betty Draper.” Kevin quoted Cheryl. “It was a great line,” he glanced over at Betty who was frowning while Alex looked heated. “But not at all true.” He quickly added.

“Well, you’re a total smokes show now.” Veronica defended Betty. “I mean it. As hot and as smart as you are, you should be the Queen Bey of this drab hive.” Veronica admitted.

“Look, if you want to be a River Vixen, I’ll help you prep. I have moves.” Veronica offered.

“Okay, you know what? Show me your moves.” Betty accepted.

Veronica squealed. “Alex?”

“No, cheerleading isn’t my thing.” Alex protested.

“Oh, come on. Drop the ‘edgy’ act and try out. I can help you too.” Veronica said.

“Actually, Alex used to be a dancer. She’s really good.” Betty told Veronica. “But you should, Alex! It’ll be so fun.” She smiled.

“Okay, no offense, Betty, but I’m not falling for her act. Have you told them what you were really like back in New York, Little Miss Richie Rich?” Alex asked.

Veronica froze. how does she know?

Alex nodded. “Of course not. I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

She got up and left.

“Wait, why would it have offended me?” Betty asked.

“You can be a little naive at times.” Kevin told her.

Betty frowned while Veronica stayed frozen.

“You okay?” Betty asked.

She sighed. “Yes, we can talk about that later though.” Veronica said as she tried to go back to the mentality she had moments ago.

——————————————————————————

Alex was lost once again. She couldn’t find Archie or Betty to ask for help so she tried being on her own. She didn’t want to take her schedule out because she didn’t want to make it known that she was lost.

She decided she didn’t care anymore and whipped it out. While looking down as her paper, she bumped into someone. He was tall, dark, handsome, and buff.

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry.” She apologized as soon as it happened.

“Hey, no worries.” She said as he licked his lips and checked her out. “Are you new here?” He asked.

“Yeah, I guess. Not new, like Veronica Lodge, I’ve lived in Riverdale my whole life. I’m just a freshman.” She smiled, thinking to herself what an idiot she was for basically telling him her whole life story.

“Damn, you’re a freshman? With a body like that?” He eyed her up and down, not so subtle. She couldn’t tell if he was flirting or not.

“Yeah, i worked out the whole summer.” Alex chuckled.

He smiled. “Well, welcome to Riverdale High. You look a little lost. Need some help?”

“Sure.” She smiled back.

She told him what class she needed to be in and he took her there.

“So, what’s your name, freshie?” He asked as they went up the stairs.

“Alex. You?”

“Chuck.” He smiled.

She nodded. “Nice to meet you.”

“The pleasures all mine.” He smirked.

She giggled. “So are you a sophomore? Junior?” She asked.

“Sophomore.” He smirked.

“Hm. Looks like the only people I seem to know are all older. Great.” She sighed.

“What, are you having a hard time making friends?” He chuckled.

“You can say that. I don’t really want friends though. It’s all just drama. I mean, what’s the point? Once high school ends, so do the friendships.” She explained.

He laughed. “Yeah, i get it.”

They got to the class she needed to be in.

“Well, here we are. Uh, I was wondering, can I get your number? I mean if you don’t mind.” He took his phone out and offered it to Alex.

She took it and put her phone number in.

“Call me.” She smirked.

“I most definitely will.” He said as he walked away, still eyeing her.

She laughed.

She walked into her class, longing for the day to be over.

In the middle of class, Veronica and Betty had Alex excused.

Alex got out and met them in the girls locker room. It was empty. “What the hell? Why did you guys have me excused?”

“Because you’re trying out for cheerleading.” Veronica said.

“I already said no, Veronica. God, you’re annoying.” Alex said as she groaned.

“I’m not taking no for an answer. Look, I don’t even know why you don’t like me. I know that you know what I was like back in New York, but that’s not me anymore. I’m trying to be different. Will you just give me a chance?” Veronica asked.

Alex looked at Betty, unsure. Betty shrugged.

“Dancing was your passion, Alex. This could be your chance to show everyone what you’ve got.” Betty said, helping Veronica convince her.

Alex groaned once again. “Fiiinnneee.”

The girls squealed.

“But if you’re looking for my blessing to date Archie, I already gave it to Betty as I mentioned before. And I’m trying out on my own.” Alex listed her conditions.

Veronica nodded. “Okay. I understand.”

Betty had a huge smile on her face. “I’m so happy you’re gonna dance again!”

“I’m a little nervous.” Alex admitted.

“You’re gonna do great, Alex.” Veronica insisted. “Now go get changed into your P.E. uniform.”

Alex did what Veronica told her to. Veronica was happy because she was reinventing herself in all the right ways.

When Alex was done, they all went to the gym.

Alex tried out first. She didn’t really feel up to it but she did. She was amazing. She use to dance when she was in middle school all the time. They had a team and everything.

Cheryl smiled big. She told her she would have to help her choreograph the team. Alex nodded.

why is she being so nice? Does she not know?

“I’m glad you changed your mind. We could really use someone like you.” Cheryl said.

“So you’ve said.” Alex said out of breath.

“You should feel really special. I never ask freshman to try out. But with you, I’m glad I did. I see you’ve got fire.” Cheryl admitted.

Alex smiled.

“Welcome to the River Vixens.” Cheryl smiled big.

Alex thanked Cheryl and went to the hallway to give the floor to Betty and Veronica. She watched them from the door way.

Then it was their turn. They were doing good so far but Cheryl didn’t look satisfied.

Cheryl complained about not seeing the heat between them. Veronica then pulled Betty into a kiss leaving Alex in shock. Cheryl rolled her eyes and passed her clipboard to one of her minions.

Alex observed Cheryl while she continued with her judging.

Alex could tell Cheryl was going through so much. She had so much anger. Alex would know. As much as she tried to understand her, she couldn’t sympathize for her because she was such a bully.

She started making Betty tell Veronica about Jason and Polly.

Alex told herself she was over Jason but she wasn’t. Whenever someone spoke about him, it broke something in her. She just didn’t want to admit it. He was gone. Whats the point?

Cheryl began to push Betty’s buttons. She was trying to get her to snap.

Alex noticed that Betty began making fists with her hands. Was she going to hit her?

Betty started tearing up. Cheryl got what she wanted.

Betty unfolded her hands, where Alex saw blood at the palms. She felt bad.

Betty started apologizing to Cheryl. She was so sweet, Alex thought.

Cheryl welcomed Veronica to the River Vixens, where as she told Betty ‘better luck next time.’

Alex was about to go in there and rip Cheryl’s red hair out but then Veronica started defending her. Guess she was trying to be better than how she was in New York.

She observed the whole situation. Cheryl expected Betty to be the one to be crying at the end but it was really her, with what Veronica said. Eventually, she accepted both of them to the River Vixens.

All the girls in the cheerleading squad went back into the girl’s locker rooms.

The girls all zipped each other up as they got into their new uniforms. Alex was happy for Betty. She knew how devastated she was when she didn’t make it last year. Maybe having Veronica around was a good thing.

Betty giggled after she saw herself in the mirror.

“Perfect.” Veronica said, smoothing out the cloth and joined in on her giggling.

“Very Betty Draper, season 1.” Veronica joked.

Betty nodded with the biggest smile on her face.

“And how do you feel, Alex?” Betty asked.

“As long as I’m dancing again, I’m happy.” Alex admitted.

“I guess I have you to thank.” Alex looked at Veronica.

“I guess you do.” Veronica chuckled. “You’re very welcome.”

Alex smiled as she looked at herself in the mirror a little longer while Betty pulled Veronica to the side.

Alex could hear what they were talking about, so doing the whole 'side bar’ thing was a little pointless.

“I know the crowd you ran with in New York.” She heard Betty say.

oh, she knew this whole time. Alex thought.

“Come on,” Veronica said to both Alex and Betty. “I’ve got a little story to tell.”

They went outside and walked along the the side of the football field, where track rehearsals were held.

Veronica talked about her dad. Talking about how everything felt in her point of view. How she and her mom were harassed by trolls. She admitted that the things the trolls were saying were true and that’s why it hurt the most. She also admitted she was like Cheryl, even worse. When her mom said they were moving to Riverdale, she made a pact with herself to use it as an opportunity to become a better version of herself.

Betty thought it was a lot of pressure for someone. Alex agreed.

Then Betty talked more about Jason and Polly. When they got together, it meant everything to her and nothing to him. She admitted that things got intense. Her mom turned on Polly, while she was trying to keep up with Jason at the same time. Betty’s mom basically disowned Polly, and continued to insult her. She said Jason hurt Polly, but it was her mom that broke her.

Alex got weird. She felt bad about laughing at Polly whenever she thought about her being in a psych ward. She also felt bad because of what Jason put her through. She had no idea they went through the same type of pain.

They both turned to Alex. It was her turn to tell them her sob story. She sighed.

“I gave up dancing when my mom left. It was a hobby that turned into a passion. I loved it. My mom supported me throughout all of it. She was always there at my rehearsals and my competitions. Until she wasn’t. She and my dad separated and she decided that she didn’t want to live in the same house as him. She left town. We didn’t find out until a week later. I’ve always held that against her because she left me when I needed her the most. I was going through puberty at the time, and I couldn’t talk to my dad or Archie about it, you know? She’s the reason I have all these issues and I’ll never forgive her. When my mom left, my dad tried being there for me when I danced but it wasn’t the same. It felt like without her support, I couldn’t do it anymore. So I quit. I let my anger get the best of me. I started seeing someone. Someone I can talk to about anything. Not necessarily a therapist. But at the time I loved to draw as well. She told me whenever I felt angry, to draw, paint, sculpt, do whatever I had to do to let the anger out in the most harmless way. And it worked. I’ve created beautiful drawings due to my anger. So in a way I’m thankful for her leaving us. I just hope she doesn’t come back. When I danced back there, I let out all of the other emotions I was keeping in. A few months back, anger was the only emotion I knew. It was bad. But I feel great about trying out now, especially now that I made the team. I’ll be dancing with or without my moms support. I don’t need her.”

She thought about mentioning Jason but she decided not to.

“Hey, i had no idea.” Betty said. “Archie only told me how it felt for him but I should’ve asked you how it felt for you as well.”

“It’s okay, Betty. I’ll be okay without her. I know that now.” Alex smiled.

“Well, you have our support, Alex.” Veronica said with a smile.

“And your dad, and Archie’s.” Betty added.

Alex smiled and nodded.

“Thanks, again, Ronnie.” Alex said.

“Aw.” Veronica put her over her chest. “You do like me. You called me Ronnie.”

She went over to Alex to giver her a hug. She wasn’t having it.

“Okay, now you’re over doing it.” She tried fleeing from her but Veronica caught her and hugged her forcefully.

“Come here!” Veronica said as she smothered Alex.

Alex looked uncomfortable. Betty laughed at the two goofs.

“But thank you, too, Betty.” She said, almost forgetting that Betty helped as well.

“Any time.” Betty smiled.

Veronica saw Archie and called him. He began to run towards them.

“You’re so doing this.” Veronica said.

“What?” Betty questioned.

Alex smiled, knowing where Veronica was going with this.

“Slaying your dragons, Betty Cooper, one by one.” She said as Betty began to freak out.

“Hi, teen outlander.” Veronica said, when he got to them.

“Hey.” He responded. “Nice outfits.”

His eyes widened when he noticed his baby sister wearing one as well.

“what? You actually tried out? Aw, you look adorable.” He teased.

“Shut up, doofus.” Alex rolled her eyes. Archie laughed.

“Betty here has something she wants to ask you about the back-to-school dance.” Veronica continued with her scheme.

Betty looked at her.

“Go on, Betty. Ask.” She smiled.

Archie looked at her.

“I was wondering if you wanted to come with the three of us.” Betty blurted out.

“What?” The three of them except Betty asked.

“Uh, no, Betty, I’m not even going. And you know, Veronica aren’t you just so busy?” Alex said, making up an excuse for Veronica not to go.

Veronica went along with Alex. “Yeah, you’re totally right. Still have lots of unpacking to do.”

Betty widened her eyes at both of them. She was definitely going to kill them after this.

“Come on.” she pleaded. “It’s your first dance at Riverdale.” Betty reasoned. “You should have someone to go with, even if it’s just a friend. You too, Alex.” She smiled lightly.

Alex thought about it. If she went, she can keep Veronica distracted.

“I mean, I’d love to, but I gotta unpack, like mentioned…” she awkwardly said.

“On second thought, you’re not all that busy and i actually change my mind. What do you say, Archie?” Alex said with a smirk.

“Uh, I’m not really in the headspace for a dance.” Archie responded.

“Oh. That’s okay.” Betty said, disappointed.

“More the reason to let loose and have a little fun, Archie.” Alex said, trying to convince him for Betty.

“Totally unacceptable, Archiekins. We need an escort!” Veronica began. “Take a break, like Alex here loosely suggested, from being a tortured musical genius and come spend a blissful evening with not one, or two but three newly-minted River Vixens.”

“We’ll text you time and place.” She smiled.

geez, this girl really doesn’t take no for an answer. Alex thought.

Archie smiled and accepted. He said bye to them and went back to the football field. Betty smiled.

Veronica and Betty went home while Alex waited for Archie.

She waited a good two hours. The whole time she was watching Chuck play though.

They began walking home.

“Damn, take your sweet ass time, why don’t you.” She said as she rolled her eyes.

“Sorry.” He chuckled.

“You make the team?” She asked.

“Uh, yeah. There’s a spot for quarterback. It used to be Jason’s. Coach Clayton is just handing it to me.” He chuckled.

Her chest felt empty. It used to be Jason’s. She sighed.

“Well, that’s just life for you, isn’t it? Getting things handed to you.” Alex’s eyes narrowed.

He scoffed. “Not the thing I want the most though.” He looked down.

“I’m guessing things with Josie didn’t go so well?” Alex assumed.

“Yeah. It was a long shot anyway.” Archie admitted. “I might ask Cheryl to talk to her for me.”

Alex nodded.

“Are you gonna take Jason’s spot?” Alex asked.

“I don’t know. I told Clayton I would have to think about it because of dad’s site. But I told dad I couldn’t stop by his site today because of football.”

Alex inhaled sharply through her teeth. “So you lied to both.”

“It’s just that I want to do football and music. I just don’t want to work with dad at the construction site.” The corner of Archie’s mouth twisted.

“So be honest. It’ll save you the trouble.” Alex suggested.

“I don’t know. I don’t want to hurt his feelings.” Archie shrugged.

“You know he’s going to find out. So just tell him.” Alex advised.

“I will.” Archie inhaled deeply. “I don’t know how, but I will.”

Alex gave him a smile. He returned it.

They arrived home.

“Hey, dad.” Alex said as she walked through the door.

Archie went upstairs as soon as he walked through the door.

“Hey, Sweetie.” His eyes widened when he looked at her outfit. “Uh, you know I was kidding about the cheerleading thing, right?”

She nodded. “I decided that I want to dance again.”

Fred smiled at her. Then he hugged her.

“I’m proud of you.” He pecked her on her forehead.

“I’m gonna go start on my homework.” She gestured towards the stairs.

He nodded. She climbed the stairs and disappeared into her room.

Archie went back downstairs with his guitar.

“Hey, dad.” He quickly greeted then went outside to the porch.

Fred debated whether it was the time to talk to him or not. Then he decided it was. He went to the kitchen to grab a beer and joined him outside where he saw him practicing his guitar.

Alex didn’t have any homework to do. She lied so she can go upstairs and wait for Chuck to call.

She almost gave up on waiting when her phone started to ring.

It was an unknown number.

“Hello?” She asked as she narrowed her eyes.

“Hey. It’s me.”

She muted her phone and squealed. She unmuted herself and went back to talking to him.

“Hi.” She smiled.

“What’s up?”

“Oh, nothing much. I’m pretty bored.” She said, faking an uninterested tone.

“Do you want to hang out?”

Her heart started beating fast. She hesitated to answer.

“Sure.” She smiled once again.

“I’ll text you time and place.”

Then he hung up. She squealed and danced with excitement.

She got a text telling her to meet him at Pop’s at 7.

She smiled. She texted back and looked for something to wear.

She decided to wear a shorter crop top with the same black jeans and shoes she was wearing earlier. She decided to add an oversized denim jacket so Fred or Archie wouldn’t say anything about her top.

Ever since she got abs, she’s been showing them off non stop.

She touched up her makeup and added perfume. Then she headed out.

She walked outside to where Fred and Archie were 'discussing’ something. She assumed he had told him.

“That’s it?” Fred asked. “We don’t talk anymore?”

He looked disappointed. You can cut the tension with a knife.

“Ahem.” She cleared her throat, trying to get their attention.

It broke them from their eye contact.

“Uh, I’m gonna go to Pop’s for a milkshake with… Betty.” She lied.

Fred and Archie sighed.

“Go ahead, sweetheart. Have fun and be careful.” Fred said with a smile.

Archie didn’t even look at her.

“Okay. Thanks.” She smiled.

She walked over to peck him on the cheek and walked off.

They continued their little discussion after she left. She heard a bit of what they were saying but decided she wasn’t going to get in the middle of it.

On her way there, she called Betty.

“Hello?”

“Betty? Hi. Are you busy?”

“Not exactly. I just came to the mall to buy a dress. What’s up?”

“Okay, perfect. I was just going to ask you if you can cover for me? I kinda told my dad I was going to Pop’s with you but I’m going with someone else.” She cringed at her words.

Betty didn’t respond right away.

“If you can’t, it’s totally fine–”

“no, it’s okay, I’ll do it.”

She can tell she hesitated but couldn’t help to let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks. You’re a life saver. Just if they ask, okay?”

“alright. Are you going to be safe though?

“Yeah, it’s just a guy from school.” Alex coyly responded.

“oh, my god! You have to tell me how everything goes.”

Alex chuckled. “I will. Bye.”

Betty said bye and hung up.

She got there and Chuck was already waiting for her. It wasn’t even 7 yet.

She greeted him and sat in front of him.

“How are you doing?” Chuck asked flirtatiously.

She smiled. “I’m okay.” She lied.

“Really? Because I’m sensing that you’re not.” He raised an eyebrow.

She sighed. “Okay, so I may have lied to my dad about coming here with Betty but whatever. He won’t find out.”

Chucked smirked. “I’m sure he won’t.”

They started talking about their personal lives. Alex talked about her mom, she didn’t really go into detail. Chuck talked about his dad, how tough it was to be the new kid whose dad is also the new teacher and coach. They made jokes and laughed. She felt like she really got to know him. Eventually, the night had to come to an end. Chuck paid the check and offered Alex a ride.

“Do you want a ride home?” Chuck asked.

It got kind of late and it was a school night.

“Sure.” She smiled. They got up and headed for the door. That’s when she saw Jughead at his usual booth. He was on his laptop, typing away.

“On second thought, ill just walk. I forgot I told my dad that I was with Betty.” Alex said as she realized.

Chuck nodded. “Alright.”

He gave her a hug and a peck on the cheek before he left. She blushed.

He went outside and drove away in his car.

She went up to Jughead and sat in from of him.

He gave a quick glance through his lashes. She smiled.

“Do you need something?” Jughead asked as his attention went back to his laptop and continued typing.

“Walk me home?” Alex suggested.

He gave her a kind smile. “Let me finish this up.”

She nodded.

Jughead was always nice to her. He was kind of like her second older brother. She loved it. She never thought of him as anything more than that.

He took one more sip from his coffee then nodded towards the door for them to head out. They both got up and started walking.

“So why weren’t you at school today?” Alex tried making conversation.

“Oh, yeah. That’s right. Today was your first day at Riverdale.” He remembered.

“Yeah… so?” She continued with her question.

He sighed. “I don’t go to the first day of school. It’s too much. Everyone is too happy and giddy.”

“Huh. I guess you’re right.” Alex shrugged.

He couldn’t stop looking at her. She looked different. Since Archie was working at his dad’s construction site all summer, he didn’t really call Jughead or hung out with him as much. Neither did Alex. So it had been a while since he saw her.

“You look very different.” He finally said.

She chuckled. “Is that a bad thing?”

“Not necessarily.” Jughead shrugged.

It was a bad thing for him because now he was attracted to her. He had never been attracted to her. Again, they only thought of each other as siblings.

“I’m surprised Fred and Archie let you go out like that.” He pointed at her top.

She laughed. “I covered it with my jacket when I left.”

He laughed. “Of course.”

“Now,…” He said, changing the subject. “What were you doing here with Chuck Clayton?” His brows furrowed.

shit.

“Y-you saw me?” She stuttered.

“Uh, yeah.” He said. “I’ve been there since you arrived.”

She scoffed.

“You can’t tell Archie or my dad, okay?” She assured him.

He nodded. “Okay. Just tell me why you were there with him.”

She groaned. “We were just hanging out, Jug.”

“Okay.” He said as he smirked.

She started blushing.

“Look’s like Archie’s little sister has a crush.” He teased. He knew how much she hated that phrase as well.

Her face scrunched up and her cheeks became more pink.

“I hate you.” She lied as she laughed.

“Yeah, sure you do.” He smirked.

“Will you be going to the dance?” She asked.

“Probably not..” he trailed off.

She nodded. “Yeah, I wasn’t gonna go but this new girl..” she trailed off as she’d rather not talk about it.

“Is she gay for you?” Jughead’s brows raised.

She laughed. “No! You’ve got lots to catch up on already.”

He shrugged. “I don’t mind.”

She smiled and he smiled back.

They got to her house.

“Well, thanks for walking me home.” She reached in for a hug, which he returned.

“No problem.”

“If you need anything, you can always call and text me. Or Archie. Whatever you prefer.” She offered.

He nodded. “You, too.”

She knew about his lifestyle. His alcoholic of a dad. How him mom left and took his sister with her. They’ve always had that in common. Not having a mother around growing up. They always had each other’s back.

He walked back to Pop’s and Alex entered her house. Archie was in the living room, watching tv.

“Where’s dad?” She asked as she put her purse down.

“At the construction site.” Archie answered blandly.

“Did everything go okay, Arch?” She asked carefully.

“Not really, but hey, at least he knows now.” Archie shrugged.

She sat next to him and rubbed his back for comfort.

“He’ll come around, Archie.” She assured him.

He nodded. “Anyway, I went out to by myself a suit. I got you a gown since I knew you would forget.”

She was surprised. “You got me a gown?” She smiled.

He nodded.

Then her eyes narrowed. “Wait, it’s not something ugly, is it?”

He laughed. “No, I made sure I chose the right one. I texted Veronica some pictures. She helped me out.”

She got excited and ran upstairs to go see it. Archie followed to see her reaction.

He got his suit and her dress in advance because like mentioned, he knew she would forget. If she got it last minute, he knew it would’ve been a disaster.

It was a very fancy satin mermaid-like gown. It was dark, forest green and festooned with flowers on it. It was colorful and beautiful. It was super long, which Archie loved most about it since she wouldn’t be showing off her legs. She smiled and squealed as she went to hug Archie.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She screeched.

“Okay, okay.” Archie said as he tried to push her off gently.

“I was pretty sure you weren’t to wear heels so I didn’t get you any.” He admitted.

“It’s fine, I don’t care.” She smiled big as she observed the gown some more. “Where did you get the money for it?”

He shrugged. “Don’t worry about it.”

She narrowed her eyes at him but didn’t think too much about his response.

“Alright, well I’m going to bed.” Archie said.

“Oh, wait, before I forget,” he turned around to face her again. “How did Pop’s with Betty go?”

There was a small pause. She thought he knew that she lied.

“Oh, it was good.” She gave a small smile and nodded.

“Alright, good.” He returned the smile. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Arch.”

She put the gown in her closet. It was stunning, she thought. That Veronica has good taste and knows what a girl likes.

She decided to get ready for bed. She got into her pajamas and took her makeup off. She set an alarm and got into bed.

She texted Betty, Veronica, and Kevin back before she decided to actually fall asleep.

——————————————————————————

It was the day of the dance. School was school. It went smoothly for Alex and Archie for the rest of the week.

Throughout the week, Alex had more subtle dates with Chuck. She started developing a crush on him. He was all she thought about.

Then it was time for the dance. Archie and Alex headed back home from school to get ready.

Alex was only excited to wear the gown but she had a bad feeling about tonight.

She got ready anyway. She got into the gown and paired it with her Doc Martens. The dress was long so no one would see them anyway.

She curled her hair and went heavier on her makeup.

Special occasion, she thought.

Archie called out to her to hurry up from downstairs.

They had to go get Betty from next door and meet Veronica at school.

When Alex came down, both her father and Archie looked at her stunned.

“Yeah, yeah, I know, I look great.” She joked as she laughed.

“You really do, Alexandria.” Fred said with tears in his eyes.

“Dad, come on.” She said as she got off the last step. “No tears.”

He nodded. “I know. You’ve just grown up to be such a beautiful young woman. And you,” he looked at Archie. “A very handsome young man.”

“Thanks, dad.” He smiled.

“We won’t be too late.” Alex said as she smiled. She got her purse and jacket.

They headed out.

They picked up Betty on their way there.

“Wow, you clean up nice, Archie.” She said with a huge smile on her face. “And Alex. You look gorgeous.”

“You, too, Betty.” Alex returned her compliment.

They began walking and got to school where they saw Veronica.

They all complimented each other.

“Thanks for choosing my dress, Veronica.” Alex began.

“What? I didn't–”

“Hey, shall we?” Archie interrupted.

He held out both of his arms for Betty and Veronica. They each held on to one. He led them to the dance. Alex followed. They thought it looked great. Or at least, Archie, Betty, and Alex did.

“Well, it’s not the Met Ball.” Veronica joked, looking around.

Alex rolled her eyes. Then her heart dropped when she saw the huge banner with Jason on it. Her mood changed quickly.

Betty noticed. She nudged Alex which made her snap out of it.

Then she looked at Archie who was also staring at the banner.

“Hey.” She nudged him. “When do you have to let Coach Clayton know about football?”

“This weekend.” Archie responded.

“Guys, can’t we just liberate ourselves from the tired dichotomy of jock/artist?” Veronica asked as her brows furrowed. “Can’t we, in this post James Franco world, be all things at once?”

Betty was smiling. Then she laughed.

“She’s right.” Alex joined.

“I’m working on it, guys.” Archie said.

“Work faster.” She demanded. “We’re gonna go get punch.” She grabbed Veronica. “Come on, V.”

They waved goodbye to Betty. Her eyes widened when she realized they were leaving her alone in purpose.

“You got this.” Veronica whispered.

They giggled as they ran off.

When they got to the punch table, Alex noticed Betty was alone.

“Wait here.” She said to Veronica she walked up to Betty.

“Um, where the hell did he go?” Alex asked, a little upset.

“He went to talk to Grundy, i guess.” She shrugged.

Alex scoffed. She was on her way to bring him back but the she got pulled back by Betty.

“No, it’s okay. Just go be with Veronica, okay?” Betty said.

Alex nodded, unsure, but she did as Betty asked.

Then Kevin went with Betty, which made Alex feel better so she wasn’t completely alone. He seemed excited too.

Veronica and Alex started dancing with each other. What the hell, Alex was already there, she might as well have some fun.

She never thought she’d come to like Veronica but she did. It was weird.

Then Cheryl stood on the stage and began talking to the crowd.

Alex tried to tuned her out but then Veronica made her pay attention. She sighed.

Alex was very uninterested.

“…it is my great pleasure to introduce this evenings main entertainment. To know them is to be obsessed with them. Though they usually perform their own material, tonight, they’re making an exception and debuting a cover of the song my parents claim they were listening to the night Jason and i were conceived.”

Alex’s face scrunched up. What the hell kind of dance was this?

“This one’s for you, JJ.” Cheryl continued. “I give you, Josie and the Pussycats!”

Everyone cheered.

Alex sighed. “I think I’m gonna sit this one out.” She let Veronica know.

“Wha–”

Then she was interrupted when Kevin came in and danced with her.

Alex looked for Chuck but he was nowhere to be found. She was a bit disappointed but she decided to shake it off.

Alex then started watching Betty and Archie. Making sure he was being a gentlemen.

Betty looked over to Kevin and Veronica for some encouragement. They gave it to her. Alex laughed to herself. She can tell Betty was nervous but she was strong.

She assumed Betty told him. Then they stopped dancing.

oh, no.

She sighed.

Then the song ended.

Alex got up and went to Kevin and Veronica.

“How do you think that went?” Alex asked.

“Not too good.” Kevin assumed from the look on Betty’s face.

Alex sighed once again.

Somehow the partying continued at Cheryl’s house. They were all invited back to hers.

They were sitting in the living room when Cheryl came in.

“It’s game time at Chez Blossom, kiddies.” Cheryl deviously said.

“We’re going old school tonight.” She continued. “Seven Minutes in Heaven.”

Alex scoffed.

Betty looked like she wanted to go home already. Veronica tried to make the best out of the situation, as did Archie.

Alex was ready to go home but she couldn’t leave without Archie.

“Who wants to tryst in the Closet of Love first?” Cheryl asked the crowd.

“My vote is 'A’ for Archie.” She answered her own question.

Everyone looked at him. He didn’t seem to be up for it.

“Anyone care to second it?” Cheryl asked around the room.

“Wait, actually..” Archie started.

“Yes, Andrews! Yes.” Reggie cut him off.

“All right. Gather round, kids.” Cheryl said.

She was up to something. Alex knew it.

“Actually, I’m gonna get out of the circle.” Alex said. “I’m not really into incest.” She said as she looked at Cheryl.

Everyone in the room laughed.

Everyone thought Cheryl and Jason were involved in that kind of way. She always denied it. It was just a rumor.

Cheryl glared at Alex, but continued the game.

“Let’s see who’s riding the ginger stallion tonight.” She went back to smiling and spinned a bottle.

The bottle took forever to stop. But when it did, it landed in between Veronica and Betty.

Although, Cheryl said otherwise.

“Oh, no way!” Reggie said as he snickered.

Archie and Veronica looked at each other.

“It’s clearly pointing to… the new girl.” Cheryl said as she tilted her head to the side. “This should be fun.”

Alex rolled her eyes.

“Um… I’m not doing this.” Veronica protested.

“That’s up to you.” Cheryl rolled her eyes. “But, if you don’t, house rules decree the hostess gets to take your turn.”

Veronica noticed Betty tense up.

She gave in and went to the closet with Archie.

Alex scoffed.

Betty looked upset. Like she trusted neither of them. She started looking impatient and a minute hasn’t even gone by.

“I’m sorry, I can’t.” A tear fell from Betty’s eye as she got up and left.

“Betty, wait!” Alex said as she tried to stop her. She failed.

Cheryl was loving the drama. Alex just glared at her. She couldn’t wait for them to come out so she can yell at them.

Whether they did something or not, Alex was still pissed.

The seven minutes passed and they came out.

They both noticed Alex’s mood changed.

“Where’s Betty?” Veronica asked, looking around the room.

Alex was about to answer but Cheryl beat her to it.

“She spiraled and fled.” Cher said casually. “Between us, she’s a lot more high-strung than she looks.”

“You shady bitch.” Veronica snarled before walking off with Archie following.

Alex stopped them.

“You’re the shady bitch.” Alex hissed. “Cheryl might have put Archie in the closet, but you didn’t have to go, Veronica.”

Veronica’s facial expression changed to shame.

“Did you guys do anything?” Alex asked as she crossed her arms.

“It’s none of your business, Alex.” Archie growled.

“Maybe not, but both of you hurt Betty.”

“I’m sorry—” Veronica’s voice broke.

“I’m not the one you need to apologize to!” Alex shouted.

“You claim to be better than Cheryl now but no. You’re still the same, bitchy, spoiled brat that everyone knows you are.”

“Alex—” Archie tried to stop her.

Veronica was crying now.

“No, Archie. She’s right.” She sniffled. “We messed up.”

She ran off.

All the good things Alex thought Veronica was, were wiped out as soon as she went into the closet. She’d swore she wouldn’t trust her again.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Archie snarled at Alex.

“No, Arch, what the fuck is wrong with you? Are you stupid? You know how Betty feels about you. You don’t give a shit if you hurt her feelings. You’re so selfish…” She paused. “Just like mom.” Her voice broke.

She walked off as well, going home, leaving Archie behind.

Cheryl faked a pout before she grinned.

Archie tried to call Betty but her phone was off. He decided to look for her instead.

Alex walked home. She was upset. More than upset. Angry. She was mad because what Archie did tonight was selfish. It reminded her of her mom.

Hence, the anger.

She’s had anger issues in her past. It’s been really bad before. Meaning she would actually think about hurting herself or the person she was angry at. She hadn’t had those thoughts in a while. The last time she had them was when she thought about hurting Jason.

In the moment, she thought about hurting everybody. Cheryl. Veronica. Her mom. Archie.

She was crying and she didn’t even realize it. It was all from anger.

She was trying to stop herself. She couldn’t let this end bad.

She got home. She looked like a mess with mascara running down her face.

“Hey, honey–” he stopped when he noticed her appearance.

“What happened? Where’s Archie?” He asked, as he tensed up. He thought about the worst case scenario.

“He stayed behind at Cheryl’s, or I don’t even know.” Alex sniffled.

“What’s wrong, sweetie? Did someone hurt you?” He asked observing her.

She gently pushed him so he could get out of her personal space.

“No, dad.” She sobbed. “Archie made me upset. A-Archie, Veronica, Cheryl, everyone.”

“Upset how?” He asked, afraid of what the answer might be.

“Dad…” she whispered as she sobbed. “It’s getting bad again.”

Fred sighed. He hugged her as tight as he could to make her feel better.

“Go get cleaned up, sweetheart. I’ve got to call Archie.”

Alex sniffled as she nodded.

She want upstairs and ripped the gown off. She cleaned her face with makeup remover. She put on some comfortable clothes and went back downstairs. She needed to be comforted so she went to Fred.

They sat in the living room. They watched tv as Fred held his beloved daughter in his arms to keep her calm.

She fell asleep. Fred didn’t move a muscle. He didn’t want to wake her. He stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head occasionally.

A few hours later, she was woken up by her dad.

“Alex?” He said with a hushed voice.

“Hm?” She replied, still sleepy.

“We gotta get down to Sweetwater River. Archie just called me.”

Her eyes fluttered open. She got up with her brows furrowed.

“Why?”

“They found Jason’s body.” Fred hesitated to tell her.

Her heart dropped.

She got up as quickly as she could.

They met Archie at Sweetwater River. Everyone who was anyone was there. Observing.

Fred held his daughter. He couldn’t imagine what he would do if that was one of his own. He reached out to Archie to comfort him as well.

Everyone was distraught. The police weren’t investigating an accident anymore. They were investigating a murder.

[reasonswhyimaginesmatter]

They Don’t Love You Like I Love You (Archie Andrews x Reader)

Request: Reader suspects that Archie is cheating, and she sees him kissing another girl, so tries to get him back by flirting with guys and stuff. You can choose how it ends

I sat staring at my phone, waiting for my boyfriend to respond. He’s been distant lately, and always has excuses. He was supposed to be coming over to my house today, but there’s no trace of him. I have the need to know, is he cheating on me? I have never loved a guy the way I loved Archie. I just didn’t know what else to think at this point. I know that I’m not perfect, but I give him anything and everything he wants. 

I internally gasped, I share my location with him, I could find where he was. I then proceeded to find where he was, and he was at Pop’s. I started getting ready, and grabbed my stuff. I headed out the door, and began my short walk to Pop’s. He better have a good explanation for why he’s avoiding me the way he is. Something doesn’t feel right, and I know that it isn’t right. 

I reached Pop’s and walked in looking around. I spotted my boyfriend, and saw him with Valerie Brown. I quickly sat down in a booth so he wouldn’t see me, and kept peeking over. He looked happy. Happier than he looks with me anyways. Should I get up and go over? Or is that too much? What’s worst, looking jealous or crazy? I didn’t want to jump to conclusions, that could be bad, but I needed to know. I’ve been walked over lately, so I’d rather be crazy. 

I stood up, and walked over to him and Valerie. I needed an explanation, and I needed one now. 

He looked up at me with wide eyes, “Y/N? What are you doing here?”

Oh, he wants to ask what am I doing here? Funny.

“I mean, I could be asking you the exact same thing since you were supposed to be at my house..” I looked at my watch, “2 hours ago” 

“Oh, sorry. I guess I lost track of time” he says chuckling while looking at Valerie who also chuckled. 

I felt my shoulder slump, “But you’ve been blowing me off for the past 3 weeks, Arch. I want to spend time with you”

“Y/N, okay. You’re being dramatic, go home. I’ll be there soon, okay?” he said looking annoyed.

I nodded, “Okay, I love you, Archie” 

He didn’t say it back, and just started talking back to Valerie, not even caring about my presence anymore. I walked away, tears brimming my eyes. I love him, why is he treating me like this? He always has excuses, and I’m over it. I won’t let him treat me like trash, when I give him everything. If he’s cheating, he can leave. Nobody will ever love him, like I love him. It’s not possible at all.

I arrive home, and sit on my couch. I start waiting for him to come over. I hope he keeps his promises. I just want my boyfriend back, that’s all. I don’t know what I’m missing, why does he have to be with other girls? I really don’t understand. I keep it sexy and fun. Whatever he wants me to do, I do it. I’m nothing but a good girlfriend, and I don’t deserve this. 

My phone vibrates, and I look down. It was from Archie.

‘I’m not going to make it tonight, things came up, I’ll see you in school’

I looked at the message in disbelief. He canceled on me? I don’t know why I’m so surprised, this is all that happens lately. He doesn’t even tell me he loves me anymore. I wish he’ll just break up with me, and get it over with. I went up into my room, and laid in my bed and slept. I would just ask him about it tomorrow.

I woke up, and got ready for school. Today, I will get the truth from Archie. I went outside, and began walking to school. I got there, and began looking for my boyfriend. I seen Jughead and Betty, so I walked up to them.

“Have you guys seen Archie?” I asked

Jughead shook his head, “No, I haven’t. Are you okay?” 

“I will be when I find out what’s wrong with my boyfriend” I said looking down.

When I looked back up, Jughead and Betty looked behind me, shocked. 

I grew curious, “Why do you guys look like that?”

Betty cleared her throat, and looked at me and smiled, “It’s nothing. You wanna come with me to the bathroom? Let’s go”

I then found it weird that she was acting like this, so I turned around. My heart broke at the sight, Archie was kissing Valerie. MY boyfriend, kissing another girl. The boy that I have been dating for 2 years, and is undeniably in love with, is kissing someone else. I trusted him with everything, and I felt like time stood still.

I turned back around and faced Jughead and Betty, tears threatening to fall.

 “I’ll see you guys later, is that okay?” I said with my voice cracking.

They both looked at me sadly, and nodded. I walked away, and went into the bathroom. I let a few tears fall, and wiped my eyes with tissue. I wasn’t going to sit here and cry my eyes out over a guy, who cheated on me. He went behind my back, that’s cool. If he wants to be a dog, I’m a dog too. I can play this game like him. Did he forget that most of the guys like me? I’d be dammed if I don’t put up a fight.

I made sure that I looked good, and walked out of the bathroom. I seen him with Valerie, at her locker. I seen Chuck at his locker, which was across from Archie. Perfect. I walked over to Chuck, and he looked up from his phone, and smirked at me. 

“Hey, Y/N, what’s up?” he said smiling at me

I seen Archie looking my way, and I smirked at Chuck, “Go on a date with me, tonight?”

He looked shocked. Fuck, maybe I’m coming off too strong. I need to tone it down, I just want Archie to realize that Valerie, has nothing on me. I just need to make him know that this isn’t phasing me.

“I though you would never ask, Y/N. I’ve been wanting to go on a date with you for the longest” he said putting a hand on my waist.

Normally, I would’ve moved his hand, but this is different. I needed to hurt Archie, like he hurt me. 2 wrongs don’t make a right, but I wouldn’t let him get away with this. 

I smiled and kissed his cheek, “See you tonight at Pop’s?” 

I didn’t get his answer, and just walked away. I wasn’t about to look stupid, or have Archie Andrews make me seem that was. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of hurting me.

I went home and got ready for my date tonight. I needed to look amazing, that’s for a fact. I didn’t want to look too formal though, that would make me look desperate. So I decided with a crop top shirt, and skirt.

I then got a text from Chuck stating that he was outside. I made sure everything was off, and walked outside, and got into his car. 

“Hey babe” he says looking at me and winking.

I just smiled and didn’t say anything. I wanted to get this over with, so he could talk about it to the football team, so Archie could hear. We arrived st Pop’s, and he opened my door for me to get out. I didn’t say thank you, and began walking inside of Pop’s. I sat down, and told Pop’s that I wanted my regular. Chuck came in and ordered his food. 

We started talking about random things, and having random laughs. I heard Pop’s bell, and looked up instinctively. My heart dropped when I seen Archie with Valerie. I tried to not let it get to me, but I loved him with all my heart. He sat in the booth next to us, not noticing me yet. I decided to spice things up with Chuck.

I got up, and sat next to him in his side of the booth. Then started biting on his ear lobe. I didn’t want to, but I needed Archie to be hurt.

Chuck chuckled (XD), “Y/N, we can go back to my place if you want to” 

I heard someone get up, and approach our table, “That won’t be necessary. Y/N, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

I looked up and seen a very angry Archie looking down at me. I smiled. This was part of my plan, and he can’t be mad. I’m doing exactly what he’s doing.

“I’m on a date? With a guy who actually appreciates what he has” I said looking at Chuck.

He kisses my cheek, which makes Archie mad. He grabs my arm, and drags me out of the diner. I almost stumble trying to keep up, but he didn’t care. He was mad.

“Y/N. You better explain what’s going on right now” he snapped glaring at me.

I shrugged, “You tried to play me, so I want to play too” 

He narrowed his eyes at me, “What the fuck is that even supposed to mean? So you go on a date with another guy? That’s how our relationship is now?” 

“Hey, you cheated first. If you’re a dog, then I’m a dog too. I’ll play this how you play” I said unbothered.

Archie sighed, “You saw that? Listen, I’m sorry. I love you, Y/N. I know I’ve been a dick, but I thought you deserve better than me” 

“So… you cheat because you think I deserve better?” I asked. 

He sounded so dumb right now. I shouldn’t even try to deal with him.

“I know. It sounds dumb. I just want you to be happy, but I can’t stand another guy being with you” he says grabbing my hands and kissing them.

My heart warmed at the small gesture. This was the Archie I knew, the one who showed his love for me. He was physically affectionate whenever possible. I loved him for that.

I rolled my eyes and laughed, “Okay, you’re lucky. Nobody could ever love you, like I do. I’ll forgive you, but if you do it again, we’re completely done”

He nodded his head fast, and kissed me hard. I loved him, and he loves me.

Nobody will ever compare to me, when it comes to loving Archie

[dukereviewstv]

Duke Reviews TV: Smallville 1x13 Kinetic

Hi, Everyone, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Duke Reviews TV Where We Are Continuing Our Look At Smallville By Talking About Episode 13 Of Season 1, Kinetic...

This Episode Sees Whitney, Falling Into A Bad Crowd After He Loses His Football Scholarship. Given Tattoos That Give Them The Ability To Walk Through Walls, They Put Chloe In The Hospital And Blackmail Lex. Will Whitney Be Able To Get Out Of This With The Help Of Clark And Lana?...

Let's Find Out As We Watch Kinetic...

The Episode Starts At The Luthor Mansion Where Lex Is Doing An Interview With Chloe While Clark Films It But When Lex Gets A Phone Call From Lionel, Lex Makes An Abrupt Exit Leaving Chloe And Clark Waiting...

But While They Look Around The Mansion, 3 Burglars Appear To Go Through Lex's Vault And I Mean Through Lex's Vault Like They Literally Walk Through The Wall And Into Lex's Vault...

Honestly, Why Does Lex Not Have A Security System In Place Whenever He's Not In The Vault?, That's Just Stupid Especially For Lex Luthor...

Taking Whatever They Want From The Vault, They Eventually Find A Red Disk And Decide To Take It With Them, But In Leaving The Vault, They're Discovered By Clark And Chloe, Who Have Returned To The Library Of The Mansion To Discover Their Money Bags...

With The Crooks Grabbing Clark (Who's Unable To Due Anything Due To The Crooks Kryptonite Tattoos) He Tells Chloe To Run Which She Does But Unfortunately She Gets Caught By One Of The Crooks Who Tosses Her Out Of A Window...

Hanging On By A Thread...

The Crooks Leave With Their Loot So Clark Can Go Rescue Chloe But He Arrives Too Late As Chloe Falls To Her Death...

Yeah, She's Dead...From A Fall That High You Are Deader Than Dead And Any Chance To Save You Would Be No Less Than A Miracle...

The Next Day At The Hospital, We See That Chloe's Alive?!? HI, How Is She Alive After That Fall!?!

(Start At 0:24, End At 0:37)

Broken Arm And Concussion, My Ass?!? Unless The Best Doctor In Metropolis Is God No Doctor On Earth Could Possibly Help Her, She Is Dead, Plain And Simple, She Has Kicked The Bucket, She's Shuffled Off The Mortal Coil, Run Down The Curtain And Joined The Fricken Choir Invisible! THIS SHOULD BE AN EX-PERSON!

With Clark Blaming Himself For What Happened To Chloe, Lex Tells Him Not To As He Explains That These Crooks Have Hit Places All Over The County, Getting In And Out Of Places Without Breaking A Single Lock, They Even Tried Breaking Into The Smallville Savings And Loan But The Alarm System Went Off...

Not Hearing About That Robbery, Lex Tells Clark That The Banks Don't Publicize When They've Been Robbed As It's Bad For Their Image...

Asking If The Police Can Trace The Stuff They Stole From Lex, He Tells Clark That Nothing Was Stolen, Despite Clark Knowing That They Had 2 Bags That Were Filled But Saying That All That Matters Now Is Finding Them And When Lex Does He Tells Clark That He'll Deal With It Accordingly...

Meaning...

Running Into Whitney Outside Of Her Aunt's Shop, She Asks Whitney Why She Didn't Meet Him At The Hospital Only For Him To Tell Her That He Forgot...

Noticing Something Wrong In His Tone, Lana Asks Whitney If Something Is Wrong And If It Involves His Dad To Which Whitney Blows Her Off By Saying That He's Got To Do Inventory At His Dad's Store...

Karate Chopping Wood To Let Off Some Steam...

Jonathan And Martha Tell Clark The Same Thing Everyone Else Has Told Him And That Becoming An Adult Means Learning A Lot Of Hard Lessons One Being That You Can't Save Everyone No Matter Who You Are...

Telling Them About Feeling The Same Effect As The Meteor Rocks But He Just Didnt Know Where It Was Coming From, This Leads Them To Suggest That Clark Go Out And Discover What He Can Instead Of Feeling Sorry For Himself By Karate Chopping Wood...

Oh, I'm Sorry According To Martha Here, I Played The Wrong Song When Clark Was Karate Chopping Wood Instead It Should Apparently Be This...

Packing Up Inside The Talon, Aunt Nell Asks Lana About Her Sudden Interest In The Talon Which Leads Me To Show This Clip From The Last Episode...

(Start At 0:28, End At 1:00)

But Nell Tells Lana That One Screen Can't Compete With A Multiplex And The Fact That Nell Wants To Be Able To Send Lana To Any College She Wishes...

However, Not Willing To Give Up So Easily, Lana Asks Who The New Owner Is So She Could Possibly Convince Them To Renovate, Telling Lana That It's Lex, Lana Realizes That She Might Have An Opportunity Since They're Friends...

Going To The Smallville Savings And Loan With Pete As The Criminals Tried To Hit There, Clark X-Rays The Vault To Discover An Arm Inside Of The Vault Door...

Meanwhile At The Criminals HQ, Their Leader, Wade, Looks For News About The Robbery But Unfortunately, There's Nothing On Any News Channels About It To Which Another Member, Scott Believes That Lex Hasn't Reported It Because He Doesn't Miss It As Even Though They Took Stuff He's Still Rich To The Point He Even Compares Him With Scrooge McDuck Saying That He Probably Has A Pit Full Of Money That He Probably Swims In...

Only Problem Is If They Had Stuck Around They Would Have Ended Up Dead As The Energy From The Tatoos Only Lasts For Short Periods And What's Worse They're Dying From It...

Believing They Need New Meat To Keep Their Dream Alive. They Eventually Figure Out Why Lex Didn't File A Report With The Police, Turns Out Lex Has Hacked Into Daddy Lionel's Computer, So, Paying Lex A Visit, They Want...

From Lex And Mention That If He Tells Anyone About This, They'll Upload The Disc To The Internet. Handing Lex A Mobile Phone, They Leave...

Running Into Whitney At His Dad's Store, Clark Like Lana Knows That Something Is Wrong With Whitney Which Leads Whitney To Tell Clark That He Lost His Scholarship...

But While Talking With Whitney, Scott Interrupts Asking Whitney If Some Shoes They Sell Come In A Size 12. With Clark Noticing Scott's Tattoos He's Like (Like Biff Tannen) What're You Looking At, Butthead?...

Showing Scott Some Shoes, Whitney Runs Into Wade Who's An Avid Fan...

(Start At 1:45, End At 2:26)

Inviting Whitney To A Party Tonight After He Closes Up, He Shows Up To Which Wade Gives Him A Tour And Offers Him The Chance To Join Them Saying That Guys Like Them Have To Stick Together...

That's Evangeline Lilly, Wade Is Kissing After Taking A Shot, The Way I See This Is That This Is Hope Van Dyne In Her Rebellious Teenage Years Before She Became The Wasp Or Her And Ant-Man Are Involved In An Undercover S.H.I.E.L.D. Operation Involving These Guys...

Well, A Guy Has To Try To At Least Get Marvel And DC To Work Together In Peace Instead Of Fighting Like Children Over Whose Films Are Better To Which Marvel Wins By A Infinity Gauntlet Snap...

Showing Whitney To A Back Room, He's Not Exactly Interested In Getting A Tattoo...

(Start At 1:03)

The Next Day, Chloe Is Awake At The Hospital (Don't See How Since...But I Digress) And Clark Goes To Visit Her Where She Notices All The Flowers She Got Including The Ones From Lex That Make Her Feel Like She Won The Kentucky Derby...

Asking If She Remembers Anything, Chloe Mentions The Tattoo Of An Octagon To Which Clark Tells Her To Sit Tight While He Does Some Digging...

Meanwhile At The Talon, Lana Tries To Convince Lex Not To Bulldoze The Talon Into A Parking Lot But Her Reasonings Aren't Good Enough To Change His Mind...

Talking To Whitney At His Dad's Store About Scott, He Tells Clark That He Doesn't Remember A Guy With Tattoo But When Clark Accidentally Hits Whitney's Tattoo, Clark Questions Him On It And Tells Him That If He's Involved With Them To Stay Away From Them...

But Unwilling To Take Advice From Clark, Since He Spends Most Of His Time Going After Lana, Whitney Tells Clark To Get Out...

Calling Lana On This, She Tells Clark That When She Asked What Was Going On, Whitney Told Her That He Went Out With Some New Friends Yesterday, Blowing Off Some Steam And When She Confronted Him On It He Got Mad At Lana The Same Way He Did At Clark, So, She Decided To Back Off...

This Leads Clark To Tell Her About Whitney's Scholarship (Even Though It's Not Really His Place To Tell Her, But When The Girl Of Dream's Boyfriend Goes Cuckoo, All Bets Are Off) Searching The Torch, Clark Finds Yearbook Pictures Of Whitney's New Friends...

(Start At 2:00, End At 2:39)

Telling Clark About What Happened With Lex, He Suggests That What Lex Said To Lana Wasn't More Of A Rejection But A Challenge To Give Him More Of A Business Reasoning Like He Wants And Less Of An Emotional One...

Closing Up His Dad's Store, Whitney Goes With Wade, Scott And Derek For A Little "Fun", And By Fun Wade Means Meeting Lex To Make The Exchange...

(Start At 1:10, End At 2:37)

Taking Whitney Back To Their Base, Whitney Tells The Others That He Didn't Join Them To Kill People, With Wade Believing Whitney Wants Out, Whitney Lies Telling Them That That's Not The Case He Just Doesn't Think That Lex Is An Idiot To Which Wade Tells Whitney Not To Worry About Lex As He Has The Fear Of God In Him...

Standing Up For Whitney, By Telling The Other Members That It Was Basically Just A Case Of The Jitters, Wade Tells Whitney To Not Screw Up Again Or Else...

Asking What Lex Was Doing With Those Guys, He Partially Tells Clark The Truth, By Saying That They Blackmailed Him For Money In Exchange For Confidential Luthorcorp Information...

(Start At 2:15, End At 2:36)

Yeah And You're My First One, Buddy, Congratulations...

Wondering What Lex's Next Move Is Going To Be, He Tells Clark Not To Worry Because They'll Soon Discover That No One Robs From Lex Luthor...

Asking About Whitney, Lex Tells Clark That It Depends On What Side He's On...

The Next Day At The Hospital, Pete Visits To Give Chloe Her Laptop Computer, Which Even Clark Knows Is A Bad Idea As Chloe Should Be Resting (Six Feet Under) But Tired Of Rest, She Asks Clark To Let Her Do This And To Not Cut Her Out...

Asking What She Has, She Comes Up With The Theory That The Meteor Rock Tattoos Are Speeding Up Their Metabolism Making Their Molecules Move At Hyper Speed, Causing Them To (In SpeedForce Terms) Vibrate Through The Wall...

Comparing It To An Ultimate Rush, Chloe Points Out That One Or Another It's Not Good For Them Either As Their Bodies Can't Handle The Stress For Long Which Explains Why They're Dying...

Confronting Lana At The Talon, Whitney Tells Her Everything As For The First Time In His Life, He's Scared...

(Start At 1:53, End At 2:29)

Taking Clark Into The Gang's Loft To Find It Empty, Clark Finds The Disc Using His X-Ray Vision, But Unfortunately Wade And His Crew Return Where Wade Is Like...

So, Having His Boys Grab Whitney, Wade Tells Clark To Give Him Back The Disc To Which Clark Turns It Into Dust So, Wade Puts His Hand Into Clark's Chest To Cause Him Pain Even Though Again, It Should Kill Him...

I Mean If The Reverse Flash Can Phase His Hand Into Cisco Ramon To Kill Him, Then That Should Kill Clark In The Same Way It Killed Cisco...

But With Clark Surviving, They Leave Derek To Guard Him, Only For Lex To Use A Taser On Derek To Stun Him...

At Least He Didn't Do It The Selina Kyle Way...

And All I Can Say About That Guy Is That He's Getting A Lot More Cowbell In Hell...

(Start At 2:15, End At 3:05)

Now....Life....Has Killed The Dream I Dreamed...

With Derek And Scott Arrested By The Cops, Lex Tells The Police That They Broke Into Lex's House And Both Whitney And Clark Figured It Out And Tried To Be Heroes. But Before Scott And Derek Pull Away In Their Police Car, Lex Tells Them That If They Keep His Secret, He'll Keep There's And If They Don't They'll Find Out That They're Not The Ones That Can Phase Through Walls...

Later That Evening, Chloe Is Released From The Hospital While Lana Gives Her New Proposal To Lex...

(Start At 1:25, End At 2:30)

And That's Kinetic And Despite My Complaints That 2 People Should Have Died In This Episode, It's An Okay Episode...

Yes, It Has It's Flaws And It Makes Feel Happy That I Don't Have Any Tattoos But While The Story Was Okay, The Characters Were Decently Written And The Episode Sees Lana And Lex Becoming Partners In The Talon So That Sees Progress In A Storyline So,I Guess I Say See It Just Don't Go Swearing On Your Tattoo That You'll Get A Good Episode...

Till Next Time, This Is Duke, Signing Off...

[getseriouser]

GET SERIOUS: Top 50 - 2019

IT'S not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog.

Marcus Bontempelli stands tall, not just literally but too comparatively against all peers, all of the more fancied usually bandied around when ‘game’s best player’ conversations are had.

It’s a who’s who of the game’s best mids in the top ten, with a couple potato gems from opposite ends of the field in there too.

The Get Serious top ten:

10.        Elliot Yeo (West Coast)

9.          Tom Stewart (Geelong)

8.          Stephen Coniglio (GWS)

7.          Jordan De Goey (Collingwood)

6.          Luke Shuey (West Coast)

5.          Patrick Dangerfield (Geelong)

4.          Dustin Martin (Richmond)

3.          Patrick Cripps (Carlton)

2.          Nat Fyfe (Fremantle)

1.          Marcus Bontempelli (Western Bulldogs)

Yeo is a freak. Strong, agile, quick, incredibly skilled. Vital to the Eagles’ success he dominates the centre square but too can kill it all over the field. Superstar.

Now Tommy Stewart is only a couple years plucked out of local footy but wow, what an impact. The best backman of any sort in the league by some way, his intercept and rebound abilities alongside defensive smarts make him seriously that good. Coniglio is the definition of a premier onballer. A jet. Moves well, finds the pill and just kills it when he gets it.

Jordy is a freak. Onball he is a bull that can dominate the centre square. Up forward though, be it playing tall like a poor man’s Ablett Senior or on the ground like a, well, Ablett Senior, he is as close to unstoppable since prime-years Buddy.

This man won a Norm Smith on a day he didn’t have a tonne of midfield mates and the opposition midfield was stacked. Shuey is supremely underrated, maybe as he plies his trade on the west coast, but is impossible to tag, has enormous influence on the game from the guts and is the quintessential match-winner.

Danger and Dusty we know. Both capable of running the show themselves. Still got it, still elite, still easy top five guns.

Crippa is beast and is easy top three. Has more influence on games now than Dangerfield and Martin, remembering he plays for lowly Carlton, those two have played in perennial finals sides. Going to dominate for some time.

Cripps is very good, Fyfe is just a bit better. Can do a little more outside and totally takes over games like few others ever. Won one Brownlow already, could seriously poll enough again this year. Megastar.

And the Bont. A couple weeks back, we said, in comparing him to Cripps and Fyfe, that he does what both those kids do well in the trenches but he is that little better because moves around like a 6″3 wingman with vision like 2010 Scott Pendlebury to boot. Also is one of the best kicks in the comp. The most complete player in it. The best.

                                    ---------------------------

A good big bloke always defeats a good little bloke, they say.

Before we nail out the top ten players in the league, a few of the league’s best taller types make the top 20.

Let’s get this done with.

20.          Josh Kennedy (West Coast)

19.          Harris Andrews (Brisbane)

18.          Steele Sidebottom (Collingwood)

17.          Ben Cunnington (North Melbourne)

16.          Max Gawn (Melbourne)

15.          Lachie Whitfield (GWS)

14.          James Sicily (Hawthorn)

13.          Tim Kelly (Geelong)

12.          Brodie Grundy (Collingwood)

11.          Josh Kelly (GWS)

So I lied. Daniher could be the best tall forward in the league, might be, but in reality its Kennedy. In the right year nudging 80 goals again isn’t out of the question and no-one else can could come close. Great mark, great converter, just a huge big-game player. Meanwhile, Andrews is now the premier fullback in the league. Might not know being hidden up in Queensland but seriously, he is never beaten anymore. Looks like Dustin Fletcher in his hey day. Very good.

This bloke came second last year in the Brownlow, which was overs but not the biggest surprise. Sidebottom is as clever and skillful an onballer/wingman you’ll find. Had an amazing 2018 and this year and is a genuine match-winner.

Cunnington is a bull. Good old country boy who doesn’t say much, but gee, in tight, is there any better? Not flashy but very few win as much ball in close and tackle as hard. Jet. And as for big Maxy, in any other year he is the premier big man, dominates the ruck like few we’ve seen in our lifetime and is an elite contested mark too.

Whitfield is stiff to not make top ten. So, so good off halfback, one of the best kicks in the game if not the best, quick, agile and a great decision maker. Utterly awesome. Speaking of half back, Sicily is almost as good a kick, almost as quick, but at 6″2ish and with elite marking skills to boot, he is as valuable a player in this league.

The Brownlow favourite can’t make top ten. Tim Kelly just wins it and is always productive. Sure, only a couple years in to his AFL career but looks like a 200-game superstar capable of a Brownlow, or a Norm Smith more to the point. Electric. And as for Grundy, whilst a ruckman is always up against to take home Charlie the big Pie could do it. Enormous at a stoppage, be it hitouts or clearances, but picks up 20+ and marks as good as any. Immense.

Josh Kelly could be the game’s best midfielder. He isn’t but damn he is close. Beautiful mover, is as good inside as outside, and when he plays well, picks up 30, the Giants win. Going to have one of the great careers, no wonder North threw everything at him...

                                     ---------------------------

Getting serious.

Less chat, more suspect placings in the guts of this Top 50 please.

Without further ado.

30.          Trent Cotchin (Richmond)

29.          Jeremy Cameron (GWS)

28.          Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood)

27.          Joe Daniher (Essendon)

26.          Toby Greene (GWS)

25.          Jackson Macrae (Western Bulldogs)

24.          Michael Hurley (Essendon)

23.          Robbie Gray (Port Adelaide)

22.          Jeremy McGovern (West Coast)

21.          Lachie Neale (Brisbane)

Cotchin is a gun I used to underrate, but seriously, that goal alone in the Geelong Qualifying Final in 2007 alone signifies how good he is - won’t look as nice on a wing or in delivering a lace out pass but for serious guts in a final, unparalleled. And effective too. Cameron still has it, leading the Coleman, enough said. And Pendles, even though not quite at his Norm Smith-winning best, hasn’t lost a stride and is still going to amass another 15+ Brownlow votes this year.

Daniher when fit is the most dangerous key forward in the game. Period. Don’t agree, go watch Anzac Day this year again. Better than any other tall forward, promise you. Greene might be the best small forward inside 50. Can mark, crumb, kick a set shot, kick a miracle snap, tackle, seriously he rates highly for everything a small to medium forward should do. Awesome.

Macrae has become a dead set gun. Beautiful kick, great runner, excellent decision maker. Massively under appreciated. Hurley, as important to Essendon as anyone an has a mortgage on a key back post in the All-Australian team as long as he is fit. And awesome with the ball in hand too, to boot.

Robbie Gray is a jet people east of Tailem Bend might not get. As crafty and mecurial as you’ll find, awesome at winning 30 in the guts or if full-time forward can seriously kick a bag despite being under 6″. A superstar, no-one has been better in Showdowns ever, compared to him.

McGovern is the premier centre-half back in the comp. And where intercept marks are king, he is that good he is invaluable a commodity you’ll find. And Neale could pinch the Brownlow this year showing he was pretty good playing second fiddle to Fyfe in Freo last year, winning their last two B&F’s too just quietly - can seriously play.

                                      ---------------------------

You thought the first ten were contentious, got nothing on these.

How we could have the reigning Brownlow medalist so low? We know better than the umpires and most of the football media?

Yes, in fact, we do. This is the rolled gold list, remember?

So, 31-40, enjoy:

 40.          Angus Brayshaw (Melbourne)

39.          Tom Mitchell (Hawthorn)

38.          Rory Laird (Adelaide)

37.          Shaun Higgins (North Melbourne)

36.          Dayne Beams (Collingwood)

35.          Shannon Hurn (West Coast)

34.          Clayton Oliver (Melbourne)

33.          Brad Sheppard (West Coast)

32.          Michael Walters (Fremantle)

31.          Eddie Betts (Adelaide)

 Brayshaw had a very underrated year last year, except by the umpires. He wasn’t a genuine Brownlow top three, but top 40 players in the comp, sure. Very likely type. Mitchell isn’t higher because if he was as good as doing something with the ball as often as he found it, Hawthorn wouldn’t lose a game. Sorry.

Laird is probably the best back pocket in the game after number 33. Beats his man but as good out of the backline as any in the comp. The recruit of Higgins to North has been a massive tick, at times last year a genuine Brownlow-worthy season, when he is on as good a midfielder in the comp.

Beamsy, well, almost had him out , but then I reconsidered his 2018 season at the Gabba, it was elite. Goal-kicking midfielders as good as him, could argue 36 is too low. Still a jet when fit.

Bunga Hurn is a gem, one of the most dependable defenders in the game, but for his kick and thighs alone, plus his leadership too, a star. Love him. Clarry is very good, having a lean year but who isn’t down at the Dees, but could be higher if we’d done this nine months ago, big, tough, clean, isn’t that far off Cripps but it’s a tight list.

Brad Sheppard is the best back pocket in the game. Period. And whilst there’s mids and forwards all over this list, and sure, they won the flag without him last year, don’t underestimate this guys skill in the Eagles winning a lot of games.

Walters is perhaps lucky to be in the 50, but I’ve seen enough this year to get him this high. As crafty a forward pocket as there is, like legit, mecurial stuff. And has poked his head into the guts too and looked good. Very valuable.

And we can’t have this list without Eddie. Still got it. Still brings the house down. The most loved bloke in the game and I kinda wish he was higher. A magician.

 ...Next week, we add 21-30 where we have the two best key forwards, and the two best key backs in the game, as well as a Brownlow medalist and Norm Smith medalist.

                                         ---------------------------

The moon landing. Cathy Freeman’s gold medal at Sydney. The night the Socceroos qualified for the 2006 World Cup.

All historic, landmark moments where you remember where you were and who you were with.

Today will be another of those days, as this pokey little column launches its inaugural Top 50 for the 2019 season.

This is as simple as it gets: its my top 50 players as it stands right here and now. A few on this list have only played a couple games this year, two haven’t played any, but it doesn’t matter, don’t over think it or make it too scientific – these are just subjectively the best 50 Australian Rules footballers we have in 2019. 

That’s it.

So without further ado, we kick off with 41-50, leading up to revealing the top ten in a few weeks time.

 50.          Jack Riewoldt (Richmond)

49.          Dylan Roberton (St Kilda

48.          Robbie Tarrant (North Melbourne)

47.          Matt Crouch (Adelaide)

46.          Isaac Heeney (Sydney)

45.          Nick Vlaustin (Richmond)

44.          Gary Ablett Jnr (Geelong)

43.          Shane Edwards (Richmond)

42.           Nic Naitanui (West Coast)

41.          Lance Franklin (Sydney)

 So Jack sneaks in as our number 50, we have missed seeing him the last two months but still a genuine gun forward despite not being typical key position size. A great career. Don’t forget how good Roberton has been for St Kilda the last few years, immense defender and we hope he can get back to good footy soon. Ask any Saints fan how important he has been the last two years especially.

Tarrant’s top three for key backs in the league for mine, rarely beaten and deserves AA considerations this year, very underrated. As is Matt Crouch, just finds the ball, a less glamourous Dane Swan in some regard, very good footballer we don’t know enough about this side of Bordertown 

Heeney is a jet, probably the most valuable player on Sydney’s list and can do exciting things at any position really. Vlaustin I think is Richmond’s most important backman, the taller guys work off one another, are somewhat codependent, but Vlaustin is the glue. Little Gaz has been great as a forward, obviously was perennial top ten if this list was done prior but has now forged a great little niche on a flank in 2019.

Shane Edwards was a flighty half-forward flanker but now a genuine class midfielder. Think Port Adelaide-era Shaun Burgoyne sorta. Really like him. Nic Nat is still a freak who despite the ruckman position being overrated, he certainly is not.

Big Budweiser, gee, like Ablett would have dominated the top ten of such a list for years, but now, whilst he still has that magic, not only is it rare given his ability to stay fit but old father time is limiting his impact when he is fit.

 ...Next week, we add 31-40, where we have a Brownlow medalist, three more defenders and the game’s most adored individual.

[sicklylittlesnowflake]

Yoo you know what I really fucking love?? Contagion. Like what If.. juggie got sick and archie took care of him and THEN he got sick and betty was like "y'alls are Dumb" and took care of them. Thank you! !

(Hey anons! I’ve decided to combine both of your prompts together, as they’re very similar and I would end up writing the same exact fic for both! So, this way, it’s longer and has more content so hopefully that’s okay with you guys! Also this has an abrupt ending, sorry! Didn’t know how to!)

Archie was really affectionate.

He loved being touched, being held, whatever. A complete opposite to Jughead, who only allowed people to touch him in special occasions. Jughead had recently found he enjoyed smaller gestures, like shoulders brushing, little back or shoulder pats or the occasional hair ruffle.

But it did not compare to Archie, who lived for cuddles and snuggles and still hugged his dad every time they parted or reunited. Even if it was just from school.

So when Archie was gone for three days on an away game for football, he was definitely in need for some cuddles.

Jughead had been sick for a few days now, his sickness starting just as Archie left. He had managed to catch himself a flu, which was a culmination of both an awful chest cold and a head cold. Jughead had been sneezing and coughing nonstop, and was just a disgusting mess of bodily fluids.

He didn’t want to worry Archie, so he hid it for a while. Jughead wanted Archie to be at his best for the game (which he found out was worth the effort, because he and Fred received a very excited call from Archie at night proclaiming their victory) so worrying Archie was most definitely a no-go!

However, once Archie was on that bus, and the bus was out of sight, Jughead had finally released that sneezing fit he had been holding in. It then accelerated into a coughing fit, which Fred just tutted to and sighed. Of course Jughead was sick. Fred simply shook his head and put an arm around the boy, leading him to the car that would take them home where he would take care of him for the next few days.

Fred had been a very good caretaker, but Jughead was nowhere near better yet. In fact, Fred had just left to buy some medicine and other supplies, not expecting Archie to return yet. He had come back quite early.

“JUGGIE!” Archie yelled as he practically smashed into the house, like the Juggernaut in that shitty X Men movie.

“Fuck!” Jughead yelped in surprise as Archie tackled him down onto the couch to give him a massive hug, squeezing the smaller boy.

“Fuck, Archie–you are literally deflating me like a–” A tickle in his nose caused him to drop his sentence, his entire body being overtaken by the sneeze.

He used whatever control of his body he had left to warn Archie, “..A-arch..hh..I’m sick..hh..! Get off..!! I’m go..gonna.. snee–”

Archie didn’t seem to care that his best friend was going to splutter germs all over his face, because he just shook his head and kept on hugging him. Then Jughead sneezed all over him, and again, and blushed so hard in embarrassment. Archie didn’t care; and just laughed loudly, missing his friend far too much to even care about the gross act.

Archie finally let him go, to see Jughead red as a strawberry.

“Archie! I’m so sorry–fuck you’re going to get sick, that was so disgusting!”

“It’s fine Jug, honestly? I’m in dire need of some coddling and I’ll get more of it if I get sick,” Archie grinned.

Jughead rolled his eyes, “You’ve got this sick fascination with sickness. Honestly, it’s the bane of my existence and it happens to me so often!”

Archie tapped Jughead on the nose, “Its probably a side effect of your great metabolism. Besides, you get to miss school and get to stay in bed all day, which are things you like??”

Jughead huffed, “Yes, if it weren’t for the fact I lose my appetite, which is the most tragic thing that could happen to me, which is really something given my life’s miserable track record, and also for the fact I hate sneezing and coughing. It’s the worst.”

Archie laughed, “They’re funny though, seeing as such loud noises can come from such a quiet person!”

Jughead groaned, “Which is why I hate them! I hate attention, and my sneezing always brings me so much attention cause I can’t be any quieter!”

Archie laughed and swung an arm around him, “You’re fine the way you are Jug, don’t ever change.”

Archie was a clingy sick person.

Jughead was still asleep, and still sick, when Archie woke up whining, asking Jughead for his dad. The moment he heard Archie Jughead felt absolutely awful and guilty for getting Archie sick. There was this pit of guilt forming in his stomach.

One emotion that Jughead could not deal with was guilt. Sadness was common enough in his life, anger was not as common but he accepted, and happiness he embraced. However guilt ate away at Jughead’s heart and sometimes he couldn’t even move he felt so guilty, that it literally consumed his every waking moment.

So Jughead put his remaining sickness aside, because he was getting better, he would be fine, and went straight into caretaking mode. A mode of his he wasn’t used to using with Archie, because Archie got sick once a year, but he was an older brother, and he had experience.

Archie had caught this weird version of his Flu, in which he had caught the chest cold part of it. He was a hacking, phlegmy mess and every time Archie coughed, it was like a pang in Jughead’s heart. He just felt so awful.

When Fred came up to check up on Archie, he gave his son the cuddles he was practically begging for. Jughead knew he was potentially thinking of staying; and he felt so bad, knowing that the Andrews were in a bit of a pinch for money. Fred should be working as much as he could; and Jughead had prevented that.

So in order to prevent this from happening, Jughead took control of the situation, claiming he was no longer sick. Fred naturally was skeptical, and felt for a temperature to find that there was none. Satisfied, Fred left Jughead to his devices with some supplies. What Fred didn’t know though, was that minutes before, Jughead had soaked his face in freezing cold water to temporarily remove the heat.

Jughead went downstairs to prepare Archie some tea to soothe his throat, and rubbed at his nose to try and hold back a sneezing fit. He sniffled for good measure and walked up with the tea, and once he walked into the bedroom Archie spread his arms out.

“Juuuuug~” He whined, clearly wanting a hug.

Jughead sighed and shook his head, “Yes, after you drink this and take your medicine.” He sat at the edge of Archie’s bed and handed him the said objects.

Archie pouted like a child, “I don’t want to! Pills hurt my throat.”

Jughead pinched the bridge of his nose and rolled his eyes fondly, “Do you want me to fetch the cough syrup instead then and spoon feed you?”

Archie nodded, completely serious.

Jughead blinked, looking at Archie, trying to decipher wether he was genuinely serious, “..Are you serious?”

Archie smiled and nodded eagerly.

“You really are something, Archie Andrews,” He teased fondly, as he went downstairs yet again to retrieve the cough syrup and a spoon. As he returned, he once again sat at the edge of the bed and poured the contents of the bottle onto the spoon and brought the spoon to Archie’s mouth, hoping Archie wouldn’t notice that his hands were shaking.

Archie didn’t seem to notice and opened his mouth, letting Jughead spoon feed the medicine into his mouth. The medicine wasn’t as horrid as he expected; it tasted like strawberry. He took the cup of tea and sipped at it, letting out a sigh of content.

“..This is my favourite tea, Jug. The kind that you make,” Archie gushed, the tea soothing the soreness and scratchiness of his throat.

Jughead huffed, “Its the type of tea you buy at the supermarket. Not exactly gourmet, luxury tea.”

Archie grinned at him, “..Yes, but you made it.”

Jughead groaned and whacked him very lightly, “This sweetness is rotting my teeth. Stop it.”

Archie then pulled Jughead in with him, taking the smaller boy into his arms and snuggling his face into Jughead’s soft, black hair.

“You’re warm, Juggie,” Archie said softly as he pulled the boy closer, to absorb his warmth.

Jughead tensed slightly, wondering if Archie had caught him in the act.

“..it’s so nice,” Archie finished, letting out a small sigh of satisfaction as he closed his eyes, relaxing. Jughead relaxed.

The two stayed like this until Jughead took out his laptop and played on a Die Hard movie to keep them both entertained, running his hands through Archie’s hair to keep him happy. Jughead couldn’t even concentrate, and could only concentrate on how bad he was feeling.

“I’m hungry,” Archie said halfway through the Avengers movie.

Jughead was relieved, needing to get out of there to grab himself a glass of water, and relieve himself of a sneeze that he was battling for the past half an hour. He groaned to cover up his act.

Jughead went down the stairs to heat up some Campbell’s Chicken Noodle, waiting until it finished before pouring the soup into a bowl. Jughead then brought the steaming bowl upstairs, the steam causing his sinuses to start to run again, and Jughead bit back the temptation to sniffle.

Archie smiled as he walked in, “That smells, great, Jug!”

Jughead shrugged and sat down next to the boy again, handing him the bowl and spoon. Archie stared at the objects for a while, then looked back up at Jughead.

Jughead could not believe this little shit.

He raised an eyebrow, “Do you want me to fucking feed you?”

Archie grinned bashfully.

Jughead sighed, unable to refuse this stupid ass boy and took the bowl and spoon back. He dipped the spoon into the creamy soup and brought the spoon into Archie’s mouth.

As much as Jughead groaned and complained, Archie knew that Jughead was secretly enjoying it. The action reminded Jughead of his little sister, and being an older brother again. Archie would often cuddle Jughead and he knew Jughead missed being an older brother. He hoped that this would help Jughead cope better, rather than make him miss it more.

When the soup was finished, Archie felt extremely sleepy. He tried to keep his eyes open but ultimately failed, grabbing onto a pillow to cuddle, thinking it was Jughead.

Jughead sighed in relief as Archie’s breathing evened out, needing a moment to himself and let out a few coughs and sneezes he had been desperately trying to hold in. He made sure Archie was comfortable and walked down the stairs into the kitchen, stifling some coughs into his sleeve. He pinched his nose as he began to sneeze, relieved he had finally tried to relieve the tickle in his nose, but still having to be quiet in case he woke Archie.

Suddenly, the door bell rang and Jughead groaned.

He made his way to the door and opened it, to see the bright and lovely Betty Cooper holding two tubs of ice cream.

“Hey Jug! I heard Archie was sick so I brought these in,” Betty said cheerily.

Jughead smiled at her, “That’s so nice of you Betty. Uh, he’s asleep right now so..”

“Okay!” She whispered as she let herself in and walked towards the kitchen. “Let’s get these ready.”

Jughead sniffled and rubbed his nose, hot on her feels. He hadn’t quite finished sneezing so the tickle was still there, irritating the heck out of him.

Betty made her way to the kitchen, knowing the place inside and out. The three were childhood friends, so of course she knew. She pulled the bowls out and began to open the tubs.

“Jug? Can you pass me the ice cream scooper?” She asked.

Jughead nodded and walked toward the drawer to locate it, and on his way back to Betty, a sudden headache flooded his senses, his legs gave way and he nearly fell, grabbing onto the counter.

“Juggie?!” She exclaimed as she rushed towards him.

Jughead gave a thumbs up, and went to look up when his hair that was peaking out from his beanie fell onto his nose, and all hell broke lose. Jughead fell onto a sneezing fit, harsh and rough.

Betty sighed in exasperation, “You’re so dumb, Jughead.”

Jughead sniffled, rubbing at his nose, “Well, at least I didn’t get sick because I refused to get off of someone who was about to sneeze.”

Betty facepalmed, “You’re both the dumbest people I’ve ever met. How you’re both not dead, I will never know.”

Jughead smiled sheepishly.

Betty groaned, “ugh, you’re coming with me!”

The blonde dragged the brunette up the stairs, literally by the ear and once they were both up at Archie’s bedroom, she literally threw him into the air mattress.

“Wh–huh, what’s happening Betty?” Archie asked groggily.

“Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way over here is still sick and is being a little..buttface,” She hissed fondly.

Jughead laughed nervously.

Archie raised his eyebrow, “Seriously, Jug? You are so impossible.”

“..You’d never let me take care of you if you knew I was still sick,” Jughead mumbled into the pillow he was thrown into.

Archie softened, “Did you..just admit you like taking care of me?”

Jughead shrugged, “Yeah I guess. It makes me feel useful again; and since..it’s always the other way around I feel like I owe ya this one.”

Archie pulled the boy into his own bed, even in his sickness strong enough. “..C'mere, there’s enough space here.”

Betty laughed at them, “You two are so weird. I’ll be back in a second.”

Betty came back up in a minute with bowls of ice cream, three flavours in each bowl. It was oddly a representation of all of them; chocolate for Archie, vanilla for Betty and Strawberry for Jughead.

As the boys basically lunged for the bowls, Betty pulled them back and shook her head.

“Medicine first, idiots,” She laughed, handing them both pills.

Jughead wolfed the pills down no problem; being used to constantly swallowing pills due to constantly being ill, and also taking pills for anxiety.

Archie pouted at Betty, “..but my throat hurts!”

Betty looked confused.

Jughead sniffled, “He’s saying he wants you to spoon feed you syrup.”

Betty rolled her eyes and poured out some cough medicine onto a spoon. She brought the spoon close to Archie’s mouth, putting on a mocking, cooing voice, “Here comes the choo choo train, little Archie!”

She shoved the spoon into his mouth and laughed heartily, and Jughead couldn’t help but join her until he began to cough again. Betty frowned and rubbed his back for him.

“Like I said, you both are so dumb,” She sighed, sinking further into the couch. They began to dig into their ice cream, as Betty put on The  Winter Soldier onto Jughead’s laptop for them to watch.

They all sat in a comfortable silence, somehow all fitting in Archie’s double bed. It felt all too familiar; the three childhood friends in Archie’s house (because Alice didn’t want FP’s son in her house, of course, and she also didn’t want her daughter in FP’s house either), watching movies with ice cream. Granted back then they were watching The Lion King and they’d all start crying, and now they were watching Captain America, but it still felt as safe and warm as it did then.

As a rather suspenseful scene came up onto the screen, despite already seeing the movie, the three tensed up. Suddenly, Jughead sneezed loudly and caused the two to jump in surprise.

“Jug!” They groaned in annoyance.

“..sorry!” Jughead exclaimed in embarrassment, until they all started laughing heartily.

Despite two of the three people sitting on that bed feeling awful and ill, they still had a great time, because there was no better medicine than each other.

[aussie-mantle]

Archie's Sister Part 3 (Reggie x Reader)

Getting to school was a heap easier with Reggie around. I sat in his car as he drove. "What up with you?" Reggie asked as I looked out the window. I sighed. "What went on at Cheryl's?" You asked Reggie. "Nothing. It was so boring. They played a couple of rounds of seven minutes in heaven-" I darted my eyes at him. "well, one round, Andrews went first and Veronica joined him." I gasped. "He's been in a foul mood all morning." I confessed to Reggie as he drove. I thought it had something to do with Betty to be honest with you. Just as Reggie parked the car and turned to face me. "I had to put your name in the book." "Reggie! You said you wouldn't!" I shouted at him. "You know you rack up some good points." I slapped his arm. "How could you?" "Let me speak." Reggie started. "I only put us hooking up in there, I had to put us, you know, doing it in there as well, but only once. It's so the guys would get off my back about us." I rolled my eyes. "Reggie. I swear to god." "Babe. I promise. It's just you and me." Reggie smiled and kissed my forehead, then nose, then lips. "I'll see you inside." He whispered and we both go out of his car. I was still mad at him though. I got to my locker just as Jughead was finishing a conversation with Archie. "What? Sardonic humour is just my way of relating to the world." Jughead mentioned as I stepped around Jason's memorial near his old locker. "Look it's the rich kids from the goonies." Jughead said gesturing towards Reggie and the rest of the jocks. "You're one of them now Arch." I told his and Jughead looked at Arch. "She's right you know." He sighed heavily. "Alright I'm out." He said walking in their direction. Reggie bumped him heavily. "What it Wednesday Addams." He beamed. He can be a real douche. Just as Archie turned away I looked at Reggie and shook my head in disappointment. I sat with Kevin and Betty in the common room as they spoke about Veronica's act of kindness. I looked up from my book. "What does magnolia even taste like?" I asked them. "We're going to find out at lunch time." Kevin pointed out just before Principal Weatherbee began to speak in the head over speaker system about treating Jason Blossoms death as a homicide. I walked into biology and sat at an empty desk. "Seats everyone!" Our professed announced as he walked into the classroom. As everyone partnered up Reggie came over and slumped down next to me. Reggie was telling me over the summer how much he liked biology and was surprisingly good in thai subject. "Look (Y/N) listen." "I'll be your partner, don't say another word." I demanded and he looked at you shocked. "O-okay." He whispered as Archie spun his head around to face the two of us. He gestured to Reggie and mouthed 'what the hell?' And I gestured back looking like I had no freaking idea what was happening. Archie turned back to speak to Cheryl. During our lunch break, I sat with Archie as he practised strumming his guitar. "You know, you should take lessons from Miss Grundy." "I'm already doing that." He muttered. "It's just an idea." I spat back turning back to my biology book. Veronica, Kevin and Betty came over talking about Moose and being fluid and his girlfriend Midge and staying in the closet. Whoa guys, great start to lunch. I could see Betty looked extremely uneasy and uncomfortable the whole time Archie played. I looked at Veronica and she looked as me. Betty suddenly couldn't control her emotions she got up after Archie's song and he followed her. Veronica went to get up. "Whatever's going on, they need to figure it out on their own." I told her and she nodded. I sat with Veronica at Pops. Bring the new girl in Riverdale must be hard, with all the rumours and everything. "What's got you in a knot?" I asked her and she looked up from her phone. "Betty and Cheryl." "They're friends?" I asked her curiously. "They might be. I'm not too sure. I gave her a mani-pedi voucher, then she turned on me a is now getting her mani-pedi done as we speak." "Cheryl and I aren't even that close." I scoffed her. "Anyways, you technically turned on her." "I didn't know, well that's a lie." She paused and looked at me. "What's it like having a hot god-like brother?" She asked me. I sighed. "It's alright I suppose. I don't really mind getting called 'Archie's Sister'." "Oh come on. It must be a pain in the arse. You never get the attention. You're always compared to him-" "That's enough. I get it." I told her an she smirked. "There must be someone in this town that treats you differently." She asked me. "Dad." I told her. "(Y/N). You know what I mean. No boys go your attention?" She asked me and I shook my head. "You're straight yeah?" "Yeah." I told her. "But I hear rumours about you and Betty." I giggled and she laughed. "Hey. It's worked. We're in the river vixens squad." I rolled my eyes playfully at her comment. "When did your mom start working at Pops?" I asked her as I spotted her mom in a waitress uniform. "The other day." She added. "Hey Mrs Lodge." I called her over. "Yes dear?" "(Y/N). (Y/N) Andrews." I smiled at her introducing myself to her. "You're Andrews daughter. God you look a like like your parents. Your mother's hair and your father's charisma. What can I do for you?" She asked me. "I was just gonna order the usual for Andrews. Archie will pick it up afterwards." I told her. "No worries." She smiled at me. "Tell your father I say hi. I haven't seen him in so long." She said as I began to pack up my books. "No worries. See you at school Ronnie!" I waved and then turned back to her. "What does magnolia taste like?" I asked her and she laughed. She opened up her bag and gave me the last cupcake in the box. "You tell me." She smiled and I took the box and walked out. I walked home carrying my books when I spotted Jughead sitting at the steps to our home. "You can come inside you know." I told him climbing up the few steps to or front porch. "It's all good. Just waiting for Archie." "It's gonna get late soon. Be careful Jughead." "Will do (Y/N)." He said as I entered my home. I stayed in the living room on my home, keeping an eye out for Jughead outside. Reggie kept sending me messages about the most recent homework we got and if I could have my notes.  Reg 🏈: Can't you tutor me tomorrow. Then we can spend some more time together. Me: Reggie, I wish I could. But I'm tutoring the elementary kids tomorrow. I'll see you during the day. I promise 😘. Reg 🏈: Good, because I have something for you Me: Can't wait. Archie's home. Gotta go.  I locked my phone and walked to the door just as Dad opened it. "Hey Jug. Coming in? We got take out from Pops." Dad insisted. "He was just leaving." Archie sneered. I raised an eyebrow at his language at his friend. The next day, school was pretty boring to say the least. No one was catching on about my relationship with Reggie. Archie would occasionally bring him up, but hey, they were mates yet they hated each other- do you see the position I'm in. Reggie sat with Moose on the common room when I walked in. "Hey (Y/N). You still tutoring me after school. yeah?" He asked in a show-off-y way in front of Moose. "Yeah." I nodded acting like I wasn't really interested in what he was saying. Everyone gathered around the common room. I sat across from Reggie and Veronica sat on the arm of my chair. "And Sheriff Keller's grilling me, Mantle the Magnificent." Reggie started puffing out his chest. "Cause I want Blossom dead when he was the only good quarterback we had and speaking of offence tight ends, should've sent the cops to you Moose." He said looking at his best mate. "Here's another unsolved mystery." Oh god Reggie. What are you about to get yourself into? "What exactly were you and Kevin doing at the river, huh? Or does being with the Sheriffs son give you a free pass, Keller?" Reggie said looking at Kevin. I put my head down in shame. I can't say anything. "Reggie's just being a blowhard Kev." Betty said to Kevin who was next to her. "I don't care what he says." I noticed Archie inserting money into the vending machine and Jughead by the side. "I mean, let's think about it if a kid at Riverdale killed Jason, it's not gonna be a jock, right?" He said and passed the football to some team mate. "No, let's be honest, isn't it always some spooky, grotty, internet troll too busy writing his manifesto to get laid." You're lucky you're getting laid yourself right now Reggie. "Some smug, moody, serial killer boy freak." Reggie continued. Then it was like a light bulb went off in his head. Don't say it. "Like Jughead." He blabbered. "What was it like Suicide Squad? When you shot Jason. You didn't do anything to the body like after?" "It's called necrophilia Reggie. Can you spell it?" That was a good one Jughead. "Come here you little-" that fired him up. I watched Reggie jump over the seat. Before I could do anything my brother stood in front of Jughead before Reggie tried to hit him. I put my hand over my mouth. I can't believe him. Trying to hurt Jughead, what if he hurt Archie? "Shut the hell up Reggie." Archie said pushing him away. "Boys." I stood up hopefully demanding an explanation. Hopefully one of them would listen to me. "What do you want Andrews?" "Nothing. Just leave him alone." Reggie took a step back. "Holy crap. Did you and Donnie Darco kill him together? Like some blood brother thing?" That got Archie's blood boil. He threw the first punch. I reached for my brother or boyfriend, which ever one I could reach first, but Veronica pulled me back. Archie got knocked out cold. I groaned. Reggie turned around and high fived Moose. "What the hell Reggie?" I asked him. "I didn't mean to knock him out, it was just some rivalry fun, wasn't it Andrews?" He said referring to my knocked out brother. I shook my head leaving him standing there. I bent down and checked my brothers pulse and tried to help him regain consciousness. I felt Reggie reach for my shoulder. "Fuck off." I spat. I sat at the island bench as Archie mended his black eye with an ice pack. Dad walked in and joined us. "Ooo I'd hate to ask this, but do you get that in a fight with Jughead?" "Jughead wouldn't hurt a fly." I said to him. "Nah. It was with Reggie. It's a long story. Jughead and I were disagreeing about a girl." "Hmm." Archie took a deep breath. "Theres this girl-" "There usually is. Please tell me you guys didn't fight over (Y/N)." "No way. That's gross. Anyways. But it's not about me and Jughead, it's about me and this girl. I think we should do something-" "I don't wanna here this." I said covering my ears. "And it's the right thing dad, but the girl says that, if we do, or if I do this thing, it'll ruin what we have. That doesn't make any sense, does it?" He questioned. I was just as confused as my dad. Is this about Betty? Bro, I'm having troubles, not you. "This is the most honest talk we've had in a while, and I'm glad you wanna do the right thing, I can see that, even under the shiner." Dad mumbled and I took the ice pack off Archie and placed it gently over his eye socket and rubbed his muscular arm. Reggie's are bigger. "Archie, if you know it's the right thing to do, even though it's tough, even though it might, it might cost ya, you gotta do it." Dad nodded. My phone vibrated in my pocket. I walked out of the room and checked it. Reg 🏈: Can we meet up before the game? I want to apologise. Me: You shouldn't be apologising to me. You didn't hit me. Reg 🏈: I know I didn't hit you, but I hurt you, please, I want to make it up to you  Me: You're lucky I love you 😘 Reg 🏈: Love you too babe 😁 We made it to the football ground. I snuck around the locker room and waited for Reggie. "Alright Reginald. You wanted to apologise?" I said as he came over. "Yes. I want to apologise to you. I've been the worst boyfriend in the world. I know that, but I'm going to make it up to you. I hope you're not doing anything this Saturday, because my parents are away again and Olivers going to a mates place. I want to cook you dinner and shower you." "Shower me? How?" You asked him. "Well I didn't have a chance to give you this beforehand." Reggie smile pulling out a chain from his pocket. A small 'R' hung off the end of it. "Reg, wow, it's-" "You don't have to wear it, I just want you to have it." Reggie smiled and engulfed me in a warm hug. "I'll take this, as long as you promise to stop teasing my friends and stop fighting with Archie." "I promise. Anything for you angel." He said and brushed his hair out of his face with one flick. "Thank you. I love you so much." I whispered in his chest. "I love you too." He said and lifted my chin with his fingers and we shared another passionate kiss. We pulled away. "Oh! Also, Jughead knows." I walked out and spotted Jughead talking to Archie smiling. Oh thank god they've made up. "You guys all good?" I asked Jughead as Archie left. "Yeah. But you gotta tell him soon or later." Jughead nudged me. "Your brother beat up your boyfriend-" "Reggie knocked him out cold." "Still, a you're lucky to have a brother and a guy like that to stand up for you." "You've stood up for me numerous times." I told him as we began to find spare seats to sit. "Oh also, you know Reg can't spell necrophilia." I laughed at Jughead. "I know." Jughead nodded. "And I know you didn't kill Jason. Heck, we all have our suspicions." I shrugged looking around the football field. "So, how long?" Jughead asked changing the subject back to Reggie and I. "Since Cheryl's party, last day of school last semester." "Huh. You've got secrets and I've got secrets." Jughead chuckled. "You bet we do." You smile to Jughead. "Oh also, Archie and I are going to Pop's after the Pep Rally, wanna join?" Jughead asked. "Jug, I have a boyfriend." "You know what I mean (Y/N)." Jughead rolled his eyes. "Thank you for your offer, but I should probably go home. I've got a bit of catching up to do. I've got to tutor some idiot that can't spell necrophilia this weekend." I said to Jughead and he laughed.

[junker-town]

Could Kyler Murray actually pull off a dual-sport career?

The Oakland Athletics still own Kyler Murray’s rights if he ever decides to give baseball a try.

The Cardinals can’t do that much to stop Kyler Murray from playing baseball.

It wasn’t too surprising when Kyler Murray declared for the 2019 NFL Draft. After all, he won the Heisman Trophy during a 54-touchdown season at Oklahoma. But he still had to do his best to convince the Arizona Cardinals (along with the rest of the NFL) he wanted to be a football player and nothing else.

“I am firmly and fully committing my life and time to becoming an NFL quarterback,” Murray said in a February 2019 statement. “I very much look forward to dedicating 100 percent of myself to being the best QB possible and winning NFL championships.”

Evidently, that stance has softened.

Talked to Cardinals QB Kyler Murray today and asked him if he would ever consider playing in the NFL and MLB in the same calendar year: “I think I could. ... Athletically, I think yeah, I could do it. I’ve been playing both my whole life. I would love to add that to the resume."

— Bob McManaman (@azbobbymac) January 17, 2020

The 22-year-old is uniquely positioned to attempt a career in both baseball and football. He’s the only person ever picked in the top 10 of both the MLB and NFL drafts.

In 2018, Murray batted .296 with 10 home runs and 47 RBI while playing centerfield for the Oklahoma Sooners. His coach at the time compared him to Phillies outfielder and five-time all-star Andrew McCutchen.

“At the plate, you would think a guy with his athleticism would have more aptitude to play defense than offense, but he’s the opposite; he’s more of an offensive player than a defensive player,” Oklahoma’s Skip Johnson told MLB.com. “He’s still in the process of maturing as an athlete. He’s dynamic, he’s physical. He reminds me of Andrew McCutchen.”

That potential won over the Oakland Athletics, who picked Murray ninth in the 2018 MLB Draft. Less than a year later, the Cardinals took Murray with the first pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He’s been a one-sport athlete since.

But his rekindled interest in the MLB can’t be news the Cardinals wanted to hear. Arizona committed itself to Murray — both with a four-year, $35.16 million contract and an entire offensive identity built around the young quarterback.

Not only would a baseball career bring a higher risk of injury, but it’d also divide his attention. Arizona would undoubtedly prefer Murray committed his time in the offseason toward being a better quarterback.

Still, there’s not a whole lot the Cardinals can do about it.

The Cardinals can’t completely stop Murray from playing baseball

In April 2018, the NFL and NFLPA disallowed “exclusive services clauses,” which would prevent a player from trying two sports. The Buccaneers wrote that type of clause into Jameis Winston’s contract in 2015. Arizona couldn’t do the same four years later.

What the Cardinals did was add a provision that allows them to void the guarantees on Murray’s deal if he participates in any “baseball-related activities.” Would that matter, though? Arizona’s on the hook for less than $9 million per year for a quarterback who has a chance at being named the Offensive Rookie of the Year soon. The Cardinals aren’t going to cut Murray, so who cares if his contract is guaranteed or not?

Where Arizona could really influence Murray’s decision is by fining him for missing meetings or practices. The MLB regular season begins near the end of March and wraps up near the end of September. The Cardinals could punish Murray if he’s absent for mandatory minicamp in June, or just about anything after training camp opens in July.

That’s made it difficult for anybody considering playing both sports. Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has spent some time at the Yankees’ spring training the last couple years, but it’s been two decades since a player actually juggled regular season games as both an MLB and NFL player.

An MLB team employing Murray will likely get a grand total of three or four months out of the outfielder before he’s required to return to the gridiron. Would he be worth it?

The Oakland A’s still own Murray’s MLB rights

While the Athletics lost big on Murray, there doesn’t appear to be many hard feelings. Oakland’s executive vice president Billy Beane said in December that he still “loves that kid” and told the Mercury News he made a trade to acquire Murray on his fantasy football team.

If Murray ever does give baseball a shot, it’ll almost definitely be with the A’s. They still own his baseball rights via their top-10 draft pick in 2018.

And as for his limited availability, it’s not too bad. Even if he left the team when Cardinals training camp began, the A’s could still get about 80-90 games out of Murray.

Deion Sanders averaged 71.2 games per season in his nine MLB seasons during his NFL career. Bo Jackson spent considerably more time playing for the Kansas City Royals, but that’s because he didn’t report to the Los Angeles Raiders until after his baseball seasons ended.

Neither was a quarterback, however. Murray would need to play an even lighter MLB schedule to make it work. Still, Oakland would probably be happy with finding out if Murray is capable of helping them, even if that’s on a limited basis.

The Cardinals wouldn’t love that scenario, but it’d be one they wouldn’t have much power to stop, legally.

For now, they don’t have to worry about it.

More from Kyler Murray on maybe someday playing both NFL and MLB in the same year: “I don’t understand why in sports they try to marginalize it. They try to make you pick one and I get it, but we’ll see. I think it would be fun. Right now, though, I’m just focused on football.”

— Bob McManaman (@azbobbymac) January 17, 2020

Murray finished his rookie season with 20 passing touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns. Both he and the Cardinals’ offense improved as 2019 went on, capping the season with 89 points in their last three games. That was enough to convince 36-year-old receiver Larry Fitzgerald to not retire and instead come back for another season.

It’s good news for the Cardinals that Murray plans to seize on the momentum and stick to football. If that changes, though, a baseball career for Murray isn’t too unrealistic.

[littlemissendlessdreamer]

THOUGHTS ON RIVERDALE

I don’t fully remember reading Archie comics back then, all I’ve got are bits and pieces of my memories  from my childhood. Archie comics debuted back in 1939 and is still popular until today. During the early 2000’s, my cousins, who were teenagers that time are obsessed with the comics and I, as a four-year old child would enjoy conversations with them about Archie comics even though I don’t really understand half of what’s happening in the comics. I would just enjoy looking at the pictures and one things for sure, I am in love with the characters  Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge.

Anyway, I’m not here to reminisce about my childhood and how I barely remember reading (or looking) at Archie comics. I am here to discuss about the awesome new show based on the Archie comics’ characters, Riverdale.

Warning: May contain spoilers to those who haven’t watched Riverdale yet…and major feels and fangirling that caused this blog post to be somewhat informal (?)

Riverdale premiered last January 26, 2017. The show is a mystery, teen drama that revolves around the lives of Archie Andrews, a teenage boy who’s trying to balance his love for music and football; Betty Cooper, the town’s girl next door and Archie’s best friend; Veronica Lodge, the rich new girl who moved from New York to Riverdale because of her father’s imprisonment and Jughead Jones, the resident emo kid who’s currently trying to write a novel and helping Betty Cooper solve the mystery Jason Blossom’s murder.

The series also follows the lives of Hermione Lodge, Veronica’s mother; Fred Andrews, Archie’s father and the other Riverdale residents, the Blossoms, the Coopers, Josie and the Pussycats and FP, Jughead’s alcoholic father.

The Show’s Pacing

The pacing of the show is kinda fast. Betty and Archie’s friendship wasn’t explored that much. Betty was head over heels for her best friend Archie, she’s been in love with him since they were young and when Archie admitted that he doesn’t return the feeling, Betty was so broken-hearted and now it’s hard to believe that she’s over Archie already in just a short period of time and now currently dating Jughead.  I get that some people say that she got over it but I wish the writers  showed how she’s trying to heal from being rejected. Don’t worry I’m not against Bughead because I’m a major bughead shipper but I wish we could have seen more of Betty and Archie fixing their relationship after that confession on the night of the dance. I really hope that we would see more of Betty and Archie acting like they’re really best friends.

Another thing that I felt was really rushed was Valarchie, Archie and Valerie’s relationship. Archie got over Ms. Grundy so fast which is so weird, and this got me thinking that wow, Riverdale residents are a pro in moving on. I was expecting him to be single and loveless for a few episodes after Ms. Grundy’s departure but I was surprised to see the writers just throw another love interest for Archie. Valerie’s talented, though the actress playing her should show more facial expression but I think it’s kind of part of Val’s character, chill and casual. She’s a great love interest for Archie,  but I think it would have been better to see them grow and develop into friends first rather than just spending one episode together and then they suddenly kiss and then become a ‘thing’,  then we don’t get to see Valerie in the next two episodes and when we do, she’s casually walking the street in the middle of winter and breaking things off with Archie when he arrived to join her.

Some pieces weren’t thoroughly explored either, the writers would bring it up and then suddenly it’s not talked about or it just disappears in the next few episodes. Though I think it is part of the story line to give the viewers the whole mysterious atmosphere and vibe of the show.

I read a lot of comments from other people saying that Riverdale needs to slow down, and yes I agree but if you look at it, they only have thirteen episodes to fit all the story line and I guess they didn’t want to us to wait until season 2 to find out who killed Jason Blossom. But yeah, maybe some side story should have been introduced on the show’s second season

The Storyline

The plot of the show is definitely different from the comics. The show is dark, mysterious and exciting.

The Characters (and cast)

I love Lili Reinhart but I’m still skeptical about her playing Betty. I don’t know, I feel like they could have casted a more fitted actress to play Betty? (Don’t hate me!) I hope I get use to her and accept her soon because Bughead and Sprousehart are life.

Is it me or does Cheryl Blossom looks like Lydia Martin from Teen Wolf sometimes? 

I like Cheryl actually, I believe she’s only cold-hearted and mean because of her environment, she may be mean, spoiled and a bitch (sometimes) but I know deep down she’s just a helpless and confused girl who just wants to be accepted like everyone does to her brother, Jason.

I would also like more screen time for Kevin, Reggie, Ethel and Josie and the pussycats.

Ships

As always, in any fandom, ship wars are inevitable but what’s funny in the Riverdale fandom is that everyone seems to be shipping everyone with everyone.

If anyone would ask me what ship I support most, I think I already stated it above, BUGHEAD. Jughead acts all tough and emotionless in front of everybody but when he’s with Betty, he becomes sweet and soft. I think he only shows that side of him to Betty which is cute. 

To be honest, I don’t know who to ship Veronica with—my best choice is Reggie or Archie  but this season I want to see Veronica be an independent, fierce and strong girl before going into a relationship but a part of me say that it wouldn’t be bad if she’s stays single. I feel like no guy can handle her toughness.

Though we only got see Jason Blossom and Polly Cooper’s relationship through flashbacks, their forbidden love story makes me sober. Their love story is torn out from Romeo and Juliet and it’s sad that Jason won’t see his twin babies grow (Major Finnick Odair feels).

 I have a feeling that he would have been a great father and a caring, loving husband to Polly. I know their plan of raising their own family at such a young age is crazy but I can imagine Jason being happy and cute as he plays with his twins.

It would be too basic if Archie ends up with Veronica but I never see them as a couple, I think it would be better if they’re just really good friends. Though it would be really fun to see Archie get jealous of Bughead but I hope he’s won’t tear up Bughead. I just want Archie to realize that he had his chance with Betty but he turned her down. Valarchie’s nice and I like it though it need more development because their relationship seems flat? Archie and Grundy’s relationship made me cringe, 

so yeah, Valarchie...or Varchie (?). I also have thoughts about Archie and Cheryl but it would be nice if their relationship becomes platonic in the end with Archie always looking out for Cheryl like what Jason does.

Soundtrack

I’m the kind of person who notices not just the output we see on the screen. I also pay attention and wonder how a masterpiece has been created—how was it written, how did they film this scene, and how the hell do the musical scorers find such amazing soundtrack!

Yes, I’m the kind of person who notices the music on the background and would instantly fall in love with song. Riverdale’s soundtrack is something new and timely. Some songs contains electro pop, I’m not usually a fan of electro pop, I only listen to few but they way the musical scorers used these songs in Riverdale was very fitting.

The soundtrack also contains original songs from the show, songs performed by Josie and the Pussycats and Archie Andrews’ melodic acoustic songs.

Scream + PLL = Riverdale

Riverdale is being compared to MTV’s Scream and Freeform’s Pretty Little Liars. I agree that it has elements similar to Scream and Pretty Little Liars but I believe that Riverdale is unique and beautiful in its own way.

Who’s the Killer?

Basically, I have no idea. I am not certain but I have a few guesses.

It could be Hal Cooper because of his hatred for the Blossoms. Maybe when he found out that his daughter Polly is pregnant with Jason Blossom’s child, it was enough to make his blood boil and loathe the Blossoms even more and kill the red-headed boy who ruined his daughter’s life.

It could be FP, Jughead’s father. I know his somehow involved with the murder, maybe he was paid by Hal Cooper to kill Jason? Or for another reason maybe?

I’m curious about Ms. Grundy though, I mean why would the writers bring her character to Riverdale if she’s not somehow involved? I don’t know if her story isn’t over and we’ll see her in Riverdale again soon enough.

It could also be someone no one suspects because that’s how the killers are usually revealed in this kind of genre or it’s someone we don’t know yet but I hope it’s not gonna be a big let down.

Anyway, Riverdale is addicting. I know some people disagree with me saying that it’s not anything like the comics and the characters seems off and somewhat different from their comic counterpart and the whole show is losing its essence and became too dark, but if you look at Riverdale as just Riverdale, a teen drama television series, it’s actually a really good show.

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[paladinquen]

Riverdale thoughts - what’s up with the redheads?

Considering how wide and expansive the Archie universe is (I mean there are gory comic versions and one where Archie is buddies with the Punisher), the possibilities in Riverdale are endless. They’re even more endless than that actually because Riverdale is more ‘inspired by’ Archie comics than anything else. I’ve only seen the first five episodes though, there’s more I don’t know yet but had to get something down. Thoughts and spoilers under the cut...

The rest of Riverdale is so-so but what keeps me coming back to every new episode is the Jason Blossom mystery - who killed him? How and why? One of the articles I’ve read has proposed a crime of passion - maybe Cheryl or Betty’s batshit momma (sigh, Mrs Cooper was so sweet in the books) killed him when they realized he wanted to run off with Polly (even that is just a guess at this point). But Jason was kidnapped, imprisoned somewhere for a week, tortured and then shot at the end of it. That’s not crime of passion Cheryl style, though it could be a batshit Cooper family thing. 

It doesn’t really fit? I think whoever did it is someone the show hasn’t delved into too deeply yet. When Betty finally gets around to speaking to Polly, I’m sure that will shed some light on a few things. I do think though that it wasn’t entirely Jason that made Polly ‘sick’ as Hal Cooper puts it, that the Coopers themselves had something to do with her overall unhappiness. For a while there I wondered if Betty was Polly and there was some odd MPD thing going on with the Jekyll/Hyde thing that Betty fights. Now I don’t think so, I think Betty struggles with a lot of control issues because of her narcissistic parents so when whatever rage it is that Betty is keeping in is let loose...it really lets loose. 

But since teenage drama is only so enticing, the show will probably drag out this mystery for as long as possible. They’ll probably find a way to make every single person in Riverdale a suspect before finally revealing anything - I mean, if that’s the way it goes, good luck to the writers.

What really gets me though is Archie - we know that this sophomore year introduces a whole different Archie from whatever came before. He was best friends with Jughead before, he wasn’t ripped before, he wasn’t on the football team, he didn’t write music. Because he wasn’t quite so good looking, people didn’t lust after him the way they currently do, only Betty loved him. And yet, he still had a tendency for sneaking out. We can guess that he gets his shocking red hair from his mother, who is conveniently separated from her husband and lives in a different town. But this year, the year Jason Blossom dies, this is the year that Archie can fill in the vacuum that Riverdale seems to desperately want him to fill, as the redheaded heartthrob. He gets slotted into Jason’s former life almost seamlessly - he gets Jason’s football jersey, music teacher (how much of this was earned by Archie and how much of this is because people look at him and think of Jason? I mean Jason’s own Mom did that!), and the admiration of the teenagers (and uh one pedophile) in Riverdale. It’s chilly that Archie has been given Jason’s life (sans the creepy family). 

There’s something purposeful about that, no doubt about it. In the comics, only Cheryl is the obvious redhead, Jason is more of a brunette or I guess, auburn-haired guy. The show decided to change that, probably to make the fact that Jason and Cheryl are twins more obvious. The families in Riverdale seem to be made distinctive by specific appearances (kind of like Game of Thrones and its golden Lannisters, platinum Targaryens - it’s more obvious in the books that each House has a specific look to them for deeper reasons) the Blossoms are fiery red, the Coopers are blonde, the Lodges have locks so black it’s not even natural. This could be character design and visual thematic choice, but this isn’t exactly a subtle show, if Archie has the same flaming red hair as the Blossoms, and is so obviously compared to Jason, it’s for more reasons than his comic character’s most obvious physical characteristic. Archie also looks nothing like his Dad, something to note when the other characters at least resemble their families. The mystery is Mary Andrews, is she a redhead from a different town? (We don’t know), is Fred Archie’s biological Dad?

Simply put, there has to be more going on with Archie than what we’re getting. He’s the star of Riverdale (I mean the comics are called Archie comics) but the entire story of the show is being driven by Betty and Jughead’s investigation, and Veronica discovering the mysteries of this town as the newbie. Archie is existing in his own world with less of a direct connection to figuring out the mystery than the other major characters. He’s got to be more involved somehow, and since he’s more interested in music than mystery, something has to drag him into it whether he likes it or not. 

I think he’s a Blossom and he’s somehow the key to the motivation behind Jason’s murder. I don’t think Archie killed Jason, but Jason was killed because of Archie ... somehow. 

I’m probably waaaay off and I still have four episodes to go, but there are my Riverdale thoughts for the day.

[mizbabygirl]

Before Blackhawks, Vinnie Hinostroza, Ryan Hartman shared football backfield (01/23/2017) [from the Chicago Tribune]

Vinnie Hinostroza said he and fellow Blackhawk Ryan Hartman are "a package deal." The two live together, hang out off the ice together and occasionally play on the same line.

As teenagers, they played hockey for the Chicago Mission and they played for the Rockford IceHogs last season hoping for a chance to crack the NHL. But during the fall of 2007, when they were 13, Hartman and Hinostroza were a package deal of another kind: the backfield duo for the Bloomingdale Bears, a travel football team.  "We were both pretty tenacious players back then," Hinostroza said. "We'd cry every time we lost. At that age we wanted to win so bad that me and him would pretty much go at it." 

If you watch the Hawks, you might be able to guess who played which position.

Hinostroza, a Bartlett native who is among the fastest skaters in the league, was the primary ball carrier while West Dundee's Hartman, who isn't afraid to mix it up with opponents, provided blocking at fullback and tight end. According to their coach, Norberto Olalde, Hartman and Hinostroza weren't just out there playing for fun. They were the best players on the team, which made it a problem if their hockey and football schedules overlapped. "They were two of my stud players, and I had to fight with them because they'd be out in tournaments playing high level," Olalde said. "So we were always fighting with the hockey schedule." Hinostroza was a workhorse running back and got most of the carries, said Olalde, who still coaches for the Bears and owns a CrossFit gym in Bensenville.

"What was great about him was that he used to run like he skated," Olalde said. "He had a very good eye for the field. It was almost like he was skating, and we'd always compare it to that. We'd say, 'Dude, this isn't hockey!' But it was perfect because he could find holes normal running backs couldn't find." Sometimes Hartman would help create those holes; other times, Hinostroza just found them on his own. "We didn't really need a blocker because he was so fast," Hartman said. "He was always running by me before the line of scrimmage. ... Even if guys were running at him, he was able to get around them, so he didn't really need too much blocking." But if he did, Hartman was there to provide it. Hinostroza was so successful running the ball that Olalde said they probably overworked him. Meanwhile, Olalde said you could see the beginning of a mean streak in Hartman when he was 13. He was a quiet kid, but on the field he was a bruiser. "Man, that kid was tough," Olalde said. "That kid wasn't afraid of anybody and he had never played football before. So we worked with him. ... We could tell him to go hit somebody, he'd hit somebody. He would nudge a guy or get in somebody's face. He would do it legally, but he wouldn't say a word. There was no (expletive)-talking with him. It was just, 'I'm going to pound you and I'm going to be OK and walk away.' We used to love watching him do that." One time, according to Hartman's father, Craig, Hartman clocked an opposing punter but wasn't aware you could get flagged for roughing the punter.

Tough decision Hartman and Hinostroza said they had to turn off their hockey instincts as best they could when they took the football field. For Hartman, that meant hitting opponents in a different way and trying not to rough kickers. "Coming in, I was probably the worst player on the team. I was terrible," Hartman said. "It's so much different. You're not just hitting your shoulder, you have to lock on and make sure they don't go anywhere. It's definitely a big adjustment, but as the season went on, it definitely got easier and felt a little more natural." Hinostroza stands just 5-foot-9, and playing football helped him learn how to take contact from bigger players, an adjustment he has carried to the NHL. "It's the same in hockey as in football for a smaller guy: The faster you're going and running into someone, it's going to hurt them more than it's going to hurt you," Hinostroza said. "Being a smaller guy, you just want to keep a low center of gravity, get under bigger guys. ... You subconsciously learn from the other sports by not even knowing it, by just having fun." Behind Hinostroza's swift feet and Hartman's toughness, the Bears went undefeated during the 2007 regular season, but hockey interfered at the most inopportune time. Hartman and Hinostroza had a hockey tournament the same day the Bears had their second-round playoff game. They could not play in both. Olalde pleaded his case with his star players. "It came down to the last day," Olalde said. "We didn't know what they were going to decide to do — if they were going to blow off the tournament or if they were going to blow off football and go to hockey." They chose hockey. The Bears lost, and the season ended. "We missed them big time," Olalde said. "We didn't have a true running back anymore. We didn't have a good tight end. But hockey was expensive to those parents. It wasn't cheap for them." That was Hartman's only season playing football while Hinostroza played another season before hanging up his cleats. They stopped because of the wear it was causing on their bodies trying to play two physical sports at the same time. "I could see the abuse Ryan's body was going through," Craig Hartman said. Rick Hinostroza, Vinnie's dad, said: "The biggest thing for me was him getting injured, not for (football) but for (hockey). Luckily, everything was fine."

Together again Their paths would diverge later in their teens. Hartman entered USA Hockey's National Team Development Program and played junior hockey for the Plymouth Whalers of the Ontario Hockey League. Hinostroza played for the Waterloo Black Hawks of the U.S. Hockey League before going to Notre Dame.

But their roads re-converged with the Hawks. Both spent most of last season in Rockford honing their games, trying to prove their mettle as NHL players. They have had ample opportunity to do so this season. Hinostroza flashes signs of brilliance with his speed and is learning how to harness it properly while Hartman has helped replace the grit and production of Andrew Shaw with 10 goals and nine assists. It's surreal for them to be playing for the hometown Hawks together after growing up playing the same sports. "Just to be in the same NHL locker room together, it's pretty weird and pretty cool," Hinostroza said. Said Hartman: "You think about coming here and playing in Chicago, there's a pretty slim chance of that even happening. But making it in Chicago and now playing together makes it that much more special." Their old football coach can hardly believe what he sees when he turns on Hawks games.

"It's crazy," Olalde said. "You have a better chance of winning the lottery. It's got to be a dream come true." And Olalde can't help but laugh when he thinks about trying to persuade Hartman and Hinostroza to choose football over hockey. They may have been good, but hockey was always the way to go. "They obviously picked the right sport," Olalde said. "But they were awesome at football."