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youwontlikethisblog · 3 years ago

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Picasso's Night

The previous post Adriana Arboleda brings you up to date with the analysis if you would like to go read it before you start reading this one :)

Now this day has been a pretty eventful one. For one: We witnessed Armando show contentment that morning when he saw Betty for the first time that day. Totally absorbed by her existence until Mario cleared his throat.

Armando screwed up big time when he made it seem and acted like spending some alone time with AA was a lot more important than Betty or the company. He yelled at her and said she got on his last nerve and since then Betty has been on a bad mood with Armando, who after Mario told him that Betty was jealous had a moment of realization and has been feeling pretty awful since then.

Interestingly enough as the night progressed and Betty was invited to the exhibition of Picasso's collection, Mario kept insisting that Armando go and speak with Betty since he was leaving to Miami the next day.

Though this time, unlike the last time he traveled, before Panama, Armando was a bit more hesitant to leave. It wasn't merely because of the new collection they were going to launch and it wasn't because of the state of company. Armando looked at Betty to see if he had any reason to stay, looking at his best friend for any excuse to stay.

After Marcela tells Betty to reserve two rooms at the same hotel they stayed last time and Mario agrees to them traveling he then starts to insist that Armando go speak to Betty and apologize for his behavior that day.

The one thing that Betty did begin to screw up on(aside from starting an affair with her hawt boss) is that now emotions begin to play a huge role, not in the personal part of her life but the professional.

Betty has always been good at maintaining a good separation of what is professional and what is personal(although most of the times when she didn't she was following Armando's lead or example) . At the start of their affair, the day after Armando kissed her for the first time, Betty stayed professional. Even afterwards, Betty stayed professional. When it has come to company time Betty has stayed professional except this time she didn't.

Her jealousy, her feelings took control of her, foretelling things to come, less than 24 hours away.

This also pushes Mario with this idea that Betty must be catered to by Armando in order to keep her under control, though Armando knows best and he knows Betty won't betray him, Mario keeps pushing this narrative and when Betty doesn't agree to it or deny she'll do it Mario understands this as her holding it over Armando's head because of what he did that day.

Writing this now has made me realize that that's the reason he wrote the letter to Armando, not as some stupid mistake or for Betty to find it, though that's a pretty good theory, is that he did it for Armando's sake. Here me out!

For one he truthfully believed that Armando would be stupid enough to screw up giving Betty her gifts and that it would ruin the relationship but the cruelty of this letter exceeded even his jokes behind closed doors, that Armando didn't find amusing anymore, even before he slept with Betty the first time. I'll explain this in the post regarding that fateful letter and from the point of view as a writer and why even that sequences of scenes was a bit choppy and had it's mistakes in execution.

Now here when Armando asks her if she will embellish the balance for him for the big board meeting she allows her anger and resentment to come above her labor obligations and she doesn't give him an answer, better yet she finds a way to ignore the subject. Yes you can argue that Betty was always motivated by her secret crush and her secret feelings for Armando to do all the things she did it in the past, like the first time she embellished the balance and while yes that is true. I have pointed out how Betty showed her love for Armando through her work. He had upset her as well in the past and she'd still do it because in the thick of it she couldn't see him fail when she had the "solution" in her hands but this time her feelings-though extremely valid since he did end up hurting her feelings not as his employee but as his girlfriend- come above everything because this time her ego, the one he was helping to build up, was crushed by the man himself and that is a mistake. Especially when it comes to something that doesn't only directly affect Armando but an entire enterprise where her friends happen to work in. This again foreshadows events to occur in less than 24 hours.

Later when he goes into her office to talk to her she tells him that she doesn't do that, but he interrupts her and tells her that he doesn't want to talk about that but that he wants to talk about Adriana and what happened in his office.

Again though Armando contradicts himself a lot when he is with Mario when we see him with Betty we know where the true nature of his worry or concern lies and it isn't the company but their relationship. The evidence in this is how he behaves when Mario brings up the company compared to his relationship with Betty.

After Betty leaves Mario explains why Betty was hurt and that he can't leave with Betty being hurt, angry, and resentful because she's got the company in her hands. Armando looks angry when Mario is explaining what his mistake translated to Betty. He's angry at himself, while Mario talks about the company Armando has his back to him, peaking outside of the blinds and then turns to him.

"What you're doing is throwing away all that work [we] put in the days before. You're practically telling her that the relationship is just a game. That for you the ninety sixties are a lot more important to you." Armando quickly looks at Mario when he says this, again he is maintaining himself composed and controlled with his emotions as his face doesn't give much of a reaction but the quick jerking of his eye sight allows us to know that this part, from all of what he has said, is a lot more important to him than the company, again because he trust Betty with it, and that he is more worried about the way he has offended Betty. "that this is made of paper and let me tell you something; an ugly wounded woman is more worse than a wounded tiger and that wound doesn't heal with pats on the back, no Sir."

This conversations motivates Armando, not to go talk with Betty since he already wanted to do that but to go searching for her so he could fix his mistake and clarify just how important she is to him.

At the exhibition Betty points out his needs with the models to which Armando tells her that she makes him feel like if he were some seggsually deprived man, which is true. This does make the assumption that Armando's conquests or what not where meant to be written as a borderline seggsual addiction behavior type of thing since she doesn't say "your infatuation, your affairs." she clearly says "your needs with the models".

The conversation here is important because it begins to open a can of warms. She tells him that he'd look good with her, that Adriana Arboleda and him would make a good pair. That their attractiveness complements each other.

"I understand asking for privacy for one thing only." We then see a frame of Armando(lol the painting behind him has to be comedic gold!) who glances away from her, lips with a slight frown but not tight or pursed, showing that he isn't mad or frustrated rather he is upset with himself. "You wanted to be alone with her. Besides I'm not asking for you to give me any explanations. At the end of it you are the president and I'm your assistant. Besides this all happened during work hours and since I've worked for you I perfectly know your needs with the models." She glances around and leaves as people get closer to them. Armando then goes after her.

Right now I'm going to admit that I was wrong, well somewhat. I wrote a post once saying that Betty was calling Armando Don instead of Sir as the relationship progressed but I was wrong. Betty uses the title of Sir as a term of respect for Armando. Even here when they've slept together and she's seen and felt the change of Armando towards her and their relationship she still calls him Sir or Don Armando, that doesn't change. However the somewhat mentioned does change when it comes to Armando. So I was wrong but towards who the theory fell upon. @el-moscorrofio-y-el-mercachifle was right and there isn't much of an importance when it comes to Betty and what she calls Armando. HOWEVER let me preference this that the person I was pointing this theory towards was my bad however the theory of changing names or titles is correct.

If you've read my untitled post regarding my OC and her relationship and how that helped me realize how I wasn't sympathizing with Marcela and that not only was A+M relationship toxic but as well as dependent than I gave you some glimpse into my original writing and how that process helped me be able to understand this part of their relationship and now that this is out of the way, let me tell you why these last two paragraphs are here.

My OC has a habit of never remembering peoples names on purpose, she does it as a power move. As if saying "You're not that important for me to remember your name." she does it especially to annoy people. Also because she's distracted half the time judging a person when they're first introducing themselves. Armando does something similar with Betty on her first days or weeks at Eco Moda.

Men tend to ignore women who they aren't attracted to. Armando did this to Betty. On a professional level he didn't ignore her but as a woman he did. We knows this because it was clearly presented this way at the start of the novela. However I really made my self take notice of this when I re-watched the first half of the novela(I haven't seen the ending bc I tend to avoid things that I cannot control or expect).

My OC is introduced to a guy who she can't stand and at first she calls him all sorts of names starting with the letter 'C' until she managed to remember his last name and calls him that for the remaining of the beginning of the story until they become friends, she switches between Caleb and Anderson, often times calling him by his name when they are having friendly conversation. When they become good friends and establish their friendship he no longer is just Anderson to her but Caleb, someone worth remembering. This is a small detail that I thought would allow the reader to determine the change of tonality between these two characters and their relationships and honestly one of my favorite details to write so when I first noticed this, I got too excited and projected it onto Betty when in reality it was Armando.

Now that I've spoiled my own writing(that I'll most likely never publish) let me explain why I bring this up, finally.

Armando called Betty at the start of the novela "Emperatriz". Once they became more familiar and Betty corrected him and told him he could call her Betty, he finally remembered her name. It's important to note this small detail because just like I intended to write it, so did Fernando Gaitan(I'm assuming lol). He did know her name but he didn't care to register it. Marcela called her Beatriz in front of him, Mario called her by her name, everyone did except for him, and she[Marcela] got upset at him when she heard him call her Betty because in her[Morch] eyes that was a cute nick name to have for an employee, especially for an "ugly" secretary. Now the switch between Betty and Beatriz did happen before the affair started, however the switch was a little bit more noticeable as Armando began to blur the lines of personal and impersonal.

In this scene though and the scenes before this, whenever emotions were heavily involved, especially when it was regarding their relationship Armando calls Betty, Beatriz, in fact even when she wasn't present in the room and he'd talk to Mario about his feelings and why he felt guilty(before he'd shut off this part of him bc Mario would start making jokes) Armando referred to Betty as Beatriz and not Betty but when it came to talking about her as an employee and not a woman he'd refer to her as Betty, it happens this day as well. When he gets upset that she won't let him spend alone time with AA and he yells at her and calls her Betty.

Why am I bringing up this small detail in this post? In this scene and the scene in Mario's apartment this is very evident and signifies the growth of his feelings and his conscious commitment to Betty as a woman.

Finally, after a bit of arguing inside the museum they leave together, of course, after sneaking out because Marcela went to the museum trying to catch him.

It's also important to note that when they found out Morch was in the museum that Betty asked Armando if he had anything to drink. It's pretty standard for him to be drinking, tipsy, or even drunk when he goes out with Betty. The one time I can remember him being completely sober was when he had to confess his feelings for her, soberly, the day after he kissed her for the first time. I broke that down in another post :)

Other times while he hasn't been drunk or tipsy he has had a few drinks at the office, however again it's pretty standard for him to drink and she knows this but why is it something that is brought up here?

Betty attributes Armando's behavior, especially when he is this...stubborn in doing things that could expose their relationship when he has been drinking. Not only that but also because the night they first hooked up they both had been heavily drinking, especially Armando and it is important as the continuation of the night leads us to Mario's apartment.

Outside, in his car, Armando finally gets to clarify his actions as he apologizes and tells her that he only wants her to know that she's more important to him than any other woman and he isn't shy to name the woman as he says: "than Adriana Arboleda, than Marcela or any other woman." This sounds a bit rehearsed but not like the previous times where we can even notice in his tone of voice and his micro expressions that he does so for manipulation. A great scene to use as a contrast to this attitude of his in this scene is the one where he makes out with Betty, the night he fights Roman and Co(wrote a post about it too). This lets us know that he really did think about how to apologize to her. While here his tone is rehearsed his micro expressions aren't a show, in reality his behavior is natural and goes along with what he is saying.

Now Betty in a teasing tone replies to him saying "That's not true." (also because she doesn't believe him)and Armando in a very serious tone and even a seductive tone, gazing his eyes down her body and back to her lips tells her that of course it's true and leans in, placing his hand on her face and they start to kiss.

This shows us that Armando once again isn't only feeling his emotional attraction to Betty, which is what moved his physical attraction forward in the past but now he can tell the difference between these two and he is okay with them! This is a huge step for Armando because he no longer is denying these things from himself. In fact he encourages himself and Betty to have these desires for one another and that as the days progress since their first sinful night his desire for Betty only continues to increase.

When they pull away his phone starts to ring, Betty asks if it's Marcela and Armando's facial expression and tone tells us it is as he looks annoyed and pissed that she's calling him.

This reaction is also standard for him because it's the exact same expression he pulls every time Marcela calls him. Especially when he's with Betty. However this small detail we've been given through the past episodes and this night also hold much significance in future episodes when his reaction to her call no longer is standard behavior from him.

While at the start of this phone call his tone is very forced in "lovingly" speaking to Marcela, his micro expressions again show us that he is just pretending. This tone is one we've heard a bunch of times before and it's one that is solely reserved for Marcela. Even on her part she tries to speak "politely" and just as if she were simply calling because she was curious but as this conversation goes both their dances of trying to keep things peaceful and civil subside and they basically start a mosh pit where they become more hostile until Armando implodes on her.

Marcela in a her standard of questionnaire routine asks Armando who he's with, hesitant he admits he's with Betty.

Her reaction to this however isn't standard of just guilt, taking into consideration the events of the day and that even Armando has told her that Marcela stops nagging him when she knows he's with her and because she's also eavesdropped and heard Armando say that Marcela doesn't consider her as a femininely threat, much less a woman, she once again gets hurt.

One could assume Armando did this to cover his tracks in case anyone told Marcela that they saw them leave together. It's also not hard to believe that Armando is stupid and says things without thinking them through in the heat of the moment however what is more obvious is that he probably wanted to take Marcela off his back so he tells her that he's with Betty. The small pause he takes before he says this helps me determine this. It could also be that he did so in case anyone did tell Marcela he left with Betty.

As Armando implodes on Marcela for insinuating that he lied to her i.e that he's going to go off with his mistress, Betty shifts in her seat and then she looks uncomfortable, returning to her guilt.

In this scene Betty experiences first hand this toxic side of Armando, one she has seen as a boss to employee scenario but not as a significant other. She has heard and even been in the middle of their fights in the past and while even then she behaved professionally, and also guilty this time she shows a lot more emotions raging from being uncomfortable to even being upset with Armando. This however is a small taste to what she will experience first hand not as the bystander of this side of his but as the target of his toxic behavior.

Later in the car, as he drives, Betty, with a broken heart tells Armando she believes that he should go on his trip and try to reconcile his relationship with Marcela and reconnect while they're away.

Armando, nervous and scared asks her if that's what she really wants and the hurt that it might be, he asks(really demands) for her to look him in the eyes and tell him this. Which Betty doesn't. In this moment his phone rings.

Why do these small details play such a huge role?

Less than 24 hours away, Betty finds the letter which plays the exact rhythm in which Armando and Mario planned her downfall.

For one: While in the past Betty agreed to embellish the balance for the meeting, this night she did not and because of this Armando went out to look for her at the exhibit and then took her to his best friends bach pad and slept with her all so she would embellish that balance which would keep the board members at peace allowing Armando to continue as the president of Eco Moda.

Two: That Mario called him this night, while they were together, and while Armando "played" it off that Mario wasn't aware of their affair, when she later questioned him about it and he denied it, these conversations begin to makes sense to her.

We know that's not the case. While Mario spoke about the company Armando didn't seem that concerned or even motivated to go searching for her but it wasn't until Mario mentioned how sever it was what that he implied to Betty that AA was more important to him than her[Betty] and what that meant for their relationship and how she was suffering because of it that he was motivated to search for her as he said, a terrible fear was settling in him because of it. While yes, Mario suggested that they hook up so she could be happy again and forgive him and that way the company would still be in their hands and not Nicolas, Armando didn't need any motivation for that.

In fact he hasn't needed any inspiration or motivation sober or drunk to desire Betty, often not being able to stop himself from kissing her and more. Was this based on Mario telling him to do this?

No.

It wasn't because Mario suggested it(At the office). Unlike their first night where Armando kept calling Mario and kept asking for help and advice, this time Armando gets annoyed at Mario for calling him. Even his behavior is different. While before when Mario kept insisting that he slept with Betty to get it over with, Armando showed disgust or being repugnant to doing an atrocity of that magnitude towards Betty, this time his face was poker. He showed no real disgust towards the idea of seducing Betty as in he'd sleep with her, more that Mario yet again was using something he knew was important and special to the both of them[B+A] as a weapon for the "good" of the company.

When he hangs up his phone Betty points out that the direction he's driving isn't towards her house, to which Armando tells her if she really wants to go home.

"I think it's for the best." He turns to stare at her and then pulls to the side of the road.

"That you want me to take you home?" He asks in disbelief. Betty swallows hard, the corner of her mouth look a bit downward and she looks scared. "Damnit!" He hits his steering wheel and though he is angry, his tone is completely different to that of his tone when he is angry at Marcela. "Damnit, Beatriz, all I want is to be with you tonight, I leave tomorrow, remember? I went to the museum, exclusively, to pick you up, to see you, to feel you next to me, to be with you. When we bumped into Marcela I risked my life and I am still risking it to this moment. Everything I've done is to tell you that I adore you, that you're above Adriana Arboleda, that you're above Marcela, of-of all of them!" We can determine he is honest here as he stares at her, exclusively even when she doesn't stare back at him, she looks pained and confused herself. "and the only thing you can tell me is that you want me to go to Palm Beach(I LOVE the way he says Palm Beach it's just ugh so nice) and have a marvelous honeymoon with her so that we can grow closer." He looks down, away from her and then ahead of him. His voice was no longer harsh at the end more so becoming almost a whisper. "That's what you want? Okay! Right now I'll drive you to your house because it's what you're asking from me. I don't deserve this." (BAWHAHAHA ARMANI YES YOU DO, MY BOY).

Now in a non-contextual way one could simply asume that he is doing this all under the bias of manipulation towards Betty, especially that final line of "I don't deserve this." but when you take all the context clues and you look at the bigger picture there's more that plays in here and I'm not saying that Armando isn't manipulating Betty in this exact scene, he is very much doing so, however it isn't like in the past. This time he does so to get what he wants, which is to spend the night with Betty so he guilts her with this final part of "I don't deserve this- because I've risked so much to spend this night with you."

However taking aside that guilt trip manipulation, why does Armando stumble once in his words showing he isn't rehashing this previous speech? and why does he take a breather before he tells Betty that he'll drop her off at her house like she asked?

While the first apology was what he rehearsed with himself, this second time around it took him by surprise to admit that she was above all the other women because this apology wasn't based on a "lets just make up right now." it was an apology based in heart and the self-realization of how true that statement was for him that while yes Betty was above Adriana Arboleda in her significance to him and even Marcela who he's engaged to, she is now also above all women.

How true is this statement?

Well we see a change of behavior of his with women in the future episodes which proves, yet again, that this confession of his wasn't just an apology so Betty could forgive him, but an apology that was sincere and heart felt.

Betty finally gives in and tells him to wait. With tears coating her lashes she stares at him "Sir, forgive me." She speaks solemnly. Armando's entire body relaxes just a bit as he sits back on his seat. "Sir, forgive me. I want you to understand that-that this hasn't been easy for me. [The situation] with Adriana Arboleda and now the conflict with Ms. Marcela; it's killing me, Sir." His anger and hurt begins to simmer down. "I don't know what to do, how to behave. I-I think I'm acting very bad." She looks away from him, touches the side of her face in a worried and embarrassed manor while Armando stares at her and timidly(in his nature) asks her what truly worry's him.

"But do you want to be with me?"

"Yes, of course, of course. It's what I want most." She caresses the side of his face, he leans towards her hand "in the world." and now he looks like he's come back to life. Staring at her with a soft glow and when she pulls her hand down he looks at it and follows it until he stares back at her, feeling the absences of her touch and missing it. "But you leave tomorrow." They both look away from each other but Armando only does so for a micro second before he stares back at her. "and I won't be complete without you, Sir." Again we get a frame of Armando's reaction to this. "Not being by your side will not be any easier for me." As she speaks her tone is soft, timid however not wavering showing that while she is nervous to confess this to him, she isn't scared of doing so.

"Betty." He says so adoringly towards her. "Betty" he whispers and touches her face and honestly I believe his favorite part of Betty's face is the side of her face, by her earlobe cause he's always touching her there. "Nobody said this would be easy. We knew this road was going to be a difficult one but you know what? I am going to be missing you so much. I'm going to miss you a lot."

Again the words here are lost in translation he tells her "Usted me va a hacer muchísima falta." which roughly is saying that there will be a huge lack of her in him, causing him to yarn for her a lot and feeling that absences of hers will make him miss her in a very profound way because he needs her. This separation they're both fearful of is what brings the forgiveness to shore.

Now the post for that specific scene will need an entire post dedicated to it because there's so much! Just so much.

For this episode I had to watch it on the NBC app so maybe there was some scenes missing.

I don't know if anyone noticed how important the story of Picasso and his lovers was for this and how they showed the similarities to Armando and his lovers, specifically how toxic Picasso was(all though if we're being honest that dood sounds more abusive than just toxic bc we all got a lil toxicity in our system but that foo was straight up kidnapping his lovers and locking them up while he had other's on the side? Nah man call a hotline.) towards his lovers. Though I am not saying that Armando is a saint, I don't think he is as bad as Picasso, that dood needed a restraining order against him so he could just stay away from all women.

In all seriousness though the similarity was that though Picasso had lovers he cared for each of them especially his last two lovers, i.e Betty and Marcela and it foreshadowed just how jealous and pathetic Armando would become in the future.

I mean I love Armando, I had to learn to love him bc at first I didn't, but the behavior he displays in the future episodes while yeah one could explain them are not justifiable and I will get into detail on that in the future posts and the post I am still writing regarding his abusive/toxic tendencies.

Overall this episode, which on NBC is episode 68, was pretty straightforward with a lot of small details to look at and not really for the leading on of the scenes in Mario's apartment but overall where the story continues to get pushed.

In this episode, the episode when Armando fights Roman and Co. and her birthday night celebration and the previous night of this episode are nights that Betty goes back to prove that what she reads in that letter are true, especially this night, before they got to the apartment and just how much Armando "risked" to spend that night with her.

While she tries to believe that it's all a joke because she's certain that Armando was honest and heartfelt with her through his actions and not words, she doesn't trust him. I'll explain that a lot more further in that post.

Pushing forward the plot of the story though we see just how these two have truthfully grown close together and not just as friends but as lovers who are exploring their feelings a lot more now and while Betty is learning to open herself up again, Armando is learning to love for the first time.

I say that Betty is learning to open herself up again because it's true. While in the past she asked Armando why he was interested in her, she shared poetic talk about how the moon inspired poets and how guilty she felt when she saw Marcela, she hadn't opened herself up, not until the night at the hotel and that wasn't much, she barely opened up when Armando was asking her about her first time. This night she was a lot more open. She called out Armando's behavior point blank and period, no hesitation, she spoke about her opinion and then she spoke about how she felt, not regarding her insecurity but regarding their relationship and the absences she'd feel from Armando not being there. While before she'd just say "I need you." or "You mean a lot to me." this time she goes on to further explain her feelings to Armando instead of just saying the words, this time she elaborates.

Armando is learning to love for the first time, being humble in realizing his mistakes, his limits and also understanding just how his actions affect others but the most important thing is that he is learning to be at peace with his feelings for Betty. We saw it that morning when he first saw Betty, later in the office when Betty caught him making out with the AA picture and just how guilty and embarrassed he felt because Betty saw him. Unlike with Marcela where he was scared that she'd cause a while scene, this time the problem for him was that Betty wouldn't cause a scene but be hurt and dump him for it, which would be a big deal for him. We saw it later when Betty forgave him after the letter and gift and when he realized the huge mistake he made with AA in the way he treated Betty. All of these behaviors has shown an Armando who has accepted that he cares for Betty, not love, but cares for her deeply and that she is important to him.

Thank you for being patient with me and sorry that I haven't been as active. These past days have been pretty busy and they'll continue being so. I'll probably only be able to post once a week but I hope that the post become better quality that way as well since I'll have more time to really break down the episodes.

Well 'til next time! :)

#betty la fea #betty pinzón solano #beatriz pinzón solano #beatriz pinzon solano #betty ysblf #armando ysblf #don armando #armando mendoza #analysis of ysblf #ysblf #mario calderon

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mercheswan · 3 years ago

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Rules: tag a few people you want to know better; make a new post, don't reblog!

Thank you @msmischief101 and @realityescapee01 for the tag! This was fine to do!

Favourite Color: Yellow! I have always liked bright colours

Currently Reading: The Kane Chronicles: The Serpent’s Shadow. I’m almost done and I have to say that I have enjoyed the series.

Last Song: Final Feliz - Danna Paola

Last Film: It was actually Encanto, cause I have Disney +, and I watched it the week it came out. I haven’t watched any other movies this month. I loved Encanto.

Currently Watching: I’m not sure if anyone actually knows this series cause it’s from many years ago. Ugly Betty. I never got to finished it when I was a teenager so I decided to watch it again. It’s hilarious.

Three Ships: Steo, GureShin and HakuKai

First Ever Ship: I don’t actually remember. I’ve always shipped the characters in the series that I’ve watched, I’ve always imagine scenarios in which they got married and had a good life together haha I mean, I remember shipping Fred and Daphne from Scooby Doo haha. But I think the first fanfiction I ever read was a Klaine Fanfiction. I loved Glee and Klaine was my obsession for many years haha.

Currently Working On: I haven’t had the time to do much, but I have almost finished the next chapter for my Steo Bachelor Fanfic. It’s been so long since I last updated. I feel so guilty. And I also started a new GureShin fic that it’s actually nsfw, which I have never done before. Let’s see if I ever finish it and if I feel brave enough to write more smut in the future haha.

I’ve seen that almost everyone who I know has already done this, so if you haven’t and you want to, consider yourself tagged! 😊

#tag games #tag challenge #get to know me #favourite things

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ojcobsessed · 4 years ago

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Oliver Jackson-Cohen, on Bly Manor and Other Things That Haunt Him

by Diana Colcer for Cosmopolitan Romania, 24 October 2020

Energetic, suave, and anchored in the reality of the problems around us, Oliver Jackson-Cohen is part of a generation of actors looking for something else, something that will remain imprinted in the collective memory. I talked about this with the actor you know from The Haunting - by the way, the latest season, The Haunting of Bly Manor, now on Netflix, is the ideal choice for a scary night, if you want to spend Halloween at home this year. Let's see what Oliver Jackson-Cohen has to say about Bly Manor and other things that haunt him.

"Why choose a role that's safe when you can take risks?" This is the question that came to my mind as I was documenting the interview with Oliver Jackson-Cohen. Because that's what I was gathering from the things we know about him. You first saw Oliver as Luke in The Haunting of Hill House - and now, just in time for Halloween, you can see him again alongside Victoria Pedretti in the even scarier second season, The Haunting of Bly Manor. In this adaptation of the short ghost story The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, Oliver Jackson-Cohen plays the charming and manipulative Peter Quint, a character who hides many scary secrets and… I won't give away more!

So you understand what I'm talking about: Oliver is used to playing characters haunted both by their own inner conflicts (PTSD due to childhood traumas, drug addiction, etc.) and, well, ghosts. And the answer to the question at the beginning of the text, which I did not ask out loud, was given to me while I was talking to him. Born in London, Oliver, the son of fashion designer Betty Jackson, has dedicated his entire career to a different philosophy of acting, starting from the premise that fear makes you grow, develop and get out of your comfort zone.

And that's exactly how most of his roles are. After the BBC drama Larkrise to Candleford, he starred in the Emmy Award-nominated mini-series World Without End, then in shows such as Dracula and Man in an Orange Shirt. In real life, when he "strips off" his characters, Oliver is a guy oozing charisma and sex appeal: he’s 1.91m tall and has a pair of blue eyes in which you can get really lost, an extremely attractive and a style of being (and, let’s face it, dressing) extremely cool.

So, he’s one to watch, and, as such, we invite you to read the interview he gave us exclusively for Cosmopolitan Romania, after which we found out spectacular details about the unseen parts of horror, fashion, lifestyle and what Oliver Jackson-Cohen has something to say about Bly Manor and other things that haunt him.

What made you determined, at only 6 years old, to become an actor? Simple! I saw Home Alone at the movies and suddenly I wanted to be Kevin McAllister. I just couldn't believe a child was appearing in a movie. I remember my father explaining to me that he was an actor and then I said to myself, "Well, I'll do all that, too."

Many people who discover their dream at such a young age change their minds later. How did you stay in acting?

Looking back, it was probably a stupid thought [process]. But I became fascinated by how you can disappear into another world and how you can become whoever you want. I still think that these things are what kept up my passion for acting. I love the whole process behind this job and the way you translate into reality something that is not, in fact, real. It's also been about luck, I admit - that people pay me to do that, and that's how I make a living.

You appeared in the first season of The Haunting of Hill House as Luke Crain. I was impressed with how you managed to get Luke away from the typical drug addict stereotype. How did you avoid this cliché? I have seen many portrayals of drug addicts over the years and I wanted to show what the person behind the addiction is like, the one who is not defined by this addiction. I think that's an extremely important thing. All over the world, people are struggling with drug addiction and, most of the time, they are excluded and marginalised because of this, but also because they are seen only in this way, as addicts. I didn't intend to do this with Luke. I felt that it was essential for the public to see the man in him, to see that he is someone who is really shaken inside, someone who has lost control of what is happening to him, but who is always trying to control his addiction.

As a society, we usually condemn or shun such people. We need more empathy in these cases, and these people need to receive the attention shown primarily to them, not to the addiction they suffer from.

When your work is so rigorous, so emotional, I imagine it consumes you a lot to play a character who has struggled with addictions all his life. How do you detach yourself from this intensity? I can't tell you exactly. I don't think you can, to be honest. For the series The Haunting… the filming was long and stressful for all the actors, but also for the crew. I think you have to gradually detach yourself from the story, as much as you can, when you get home, but at the same time, you have to stay in the character's shoes, because the next day you return to the set for a new round of filming. It was a demanding experience, but it was worth it.

Is there anything you wish you’d known before you started working a horror TV show? Or about a series with an intense family drama? Know that it's not that scary when you're filming. Not at all. I started working from the pre-production phase and I knew it was going to be a ghost series… and, initially, I had the impression that there was always “someone” in my Atlanta apartment. But from the moment you get on set, you realise that the series about ghosts is just another job. The coolest thing when you are part of a horror series is when you realise, in the end, that you can watch it [later] without any problems, because all the tension and panic are built up in the editing process.

I know you're a big fan of the horror genre in general. Is it an area you want to explore further? I think so. But I wouldn't say that I intended, from the beginning, specifically, to explore any certain genre. Everything is, in fact, in the characters. Always. If it's an interesting role, I definitely want it. But what I find incredible about this genre is that the dose of horror is often a metaphor for other elements of our lives. But when horror is done properly, it can affect us incredibly, which is true.

You're back to haunt us again in the second season of the Netflix anthology series, this time called The Haunting of Bly Manor. What can you tell me about the new character you play? I'm afraid I don't want to reveal too much and I'd rather you watch the show and form your own impression. All I can say is that the new series, Bly Manor, is completely different from the first, which I like. My current character, a young man named Peter, is the polar opposite of Luke, so for me, as an actor, he was wonderful. Ah, also don’t even try to watch this season at night, alone at home, because the plot is really creepy!

About The Invisible Man, another classic monster comeback, in which you play alongside Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid's Tale), what can you tell me? The film debates the notion of ownership of a person (editor’s note: Jackson-Cohen's character is a sociopath obsessed with control, and we don't know if he terrorises his ex-girlfriend as a ghost or if he actually staged his death). I look forward to seeing how this film will be received by the public, because Leigh Whannell is an incredible screenwriter and director. He wrote a fresh story, which I find brilliant, which follows the Invisible Man in the context of connections with other characters, but also with real people. It's a very clever movie.

How would you best describe yourself using the title of a movie?

Hm… The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, the classic directed by Sergio Leone in 1966.

Are you into fashion? Yes, I really am. I was raised by my parents who worked in the fashion industry, which influenced me quite a lot over the years.

Do you wear high-fashion pieces in everyday life? Why not?!

Your mother is the designer Betty Jackson. Has he ever given you advice on clothing style?

I don't know if she gave me style advice in the true sense of the word, but it's great to talk to her about style and clothes. Her belief has always been one like "Wear something that makes you feel good,” so I adopted this perspective as well. She is an incredible woman, with a good eye for fashion, so she often helps me.

You divide your life between London and Los Angeles. How do men groom themselves in the two cities? Have you noticed different approaches?

Probably. LA is a more eccentric place in terms of style and fashion, with more pressure to that end, at least from what I've noticed. In Los Angeles, it's more important to look good physically. In London, on the other hand, it seems more important to combine clothes and accessories in a cool and smart way.

How do you stay in shape?

I honestly don’t care. I only exercise when I have to, and when I don't have to, I eat everything I can. I go to the gym if I notice that my weight is getting out of control.

What do you like to do in your free time?

To be the laziest person. Seriously. I would love to count all the hours I’ve spent sleeping or lazing around!

#oliver jackson-cohen #oliver jackson cohen #peter quint #luke crain #thobm #the haunting of bly manor #the invisible man #interviews #2020 #photo shoots #translated by me and google

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granvarones · 4 years ago

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I’ve always taken some level of comfort in the holiday season. Wrapping gifts, decorating the tree, queuing up the holiday classics on the radio. There’s a repetition of the holidays and their associated festivities that I’ve always taken comfort in as a queer kid of color growing up. A welcomed pomp and circumstance to bookend any year, no matter how challenging or depressing. Over the years, I craved the kind of holiday cheer that could look and feel like me and the spaces that I occupied.

You don’t have to look too deeply to understand that Christmas and its pop culture breadcrumbs have historically been dominated by whiteness. The benchmarks of the holiday season are usually found in “A Christmas Story” marathons, Bing Crosby ditties, and Charlie Brown.

Unbeknownst to most, an update on a classic was about to disrupt any antiquated, albeit comfortable, ideas of what constitutes a “classic” Christmas. The one driving a bulldozer through the most wonderful time of the year would be a crass, Black, bisexual, singing superstar with a pill problem and set of enemies ready to take her down. Her name is Ebony Scrooge.

The VH1 made-for-television film “A Diva’s Christmas Carol,” written/directed by Richard Schenkman debuted on December 13, 2000 and in the years since its debut would generate a loyal fanbase of viewers. The powers that be, having yet to see its underground following, leave viewers no choice but to pull out their DVD players every year, hope for a midnight cable viewing, or search through YouTube to satisfy the desire for this Christmas gem.

Here’s a glimpse into how Ebony flips Christmas on its head.

1. A Fabulous Spin on an Old Favorite

The film reimagines the classic Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” in a universe of late 90s era diva-dom. The iconic Ebenezer Scrooge is retooled as Ebony Scrooge, a Black pop/R&B princess with massive success but little love in her heart. One fateful night alongside some oddball spirits has her questioning her cold ways just in time for Christmas. Produced for television by VH1, it arrived right at the peak of its massively popular VH1 Divas Live series.

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2. Starring THE Vanessa Williams

VH1 founds its Ebony Scrooge in Vanessa Williams. An acclaimed singer and actress, Williams was no stranger to success at the time. By the film’s release, she had five hit albums under her belt and more than a dozen Hot 100 entries to her name. Nor was she a stranger to Christmas, having released a popular holiday album in 1996. With hit movies and Broadway on her resume as well, there was no better choice to bring this Scrooge to life.

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3. The Bitch is Back

Williams is no holds barred in her take on the classic Scrooge character. She vacillates between complete apathy and all-out bitchiness and finds every delightful opportunity in between to ham it up for the camera. In fact, Williams’ Ebony Scrooge caught the eye of the late Silvio Horta who campaigned to have her fill the role of another grand dame – Wilhelmina Slater on the hit show “Ugly Betty.”

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4. No Shortage of Camp

Completely aware of its own ridiculousness and in on its own fun, “A Diva’s Christmas Carol” ups the camp and embeds clever one-liners and mounds of witty banter into its script. When Ebony comes face to face with her dead former friend and bandmate Marli Jacobs, the two spar in true Dynasty fashion about whether Jacobs is there to do her nails or warn her of her evil ways. Chock full of pop culture references, the film pokes fun at Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Bette Midler, and even a hilarious revelation of a tryst between Ebony and Anne Heche.

5. Oh, the Fashions!

Moving across decades, the film anchors itself primarily in the 80s and 90s. So, for viewers, there’s quite the visual treat watching Williams and company play dress up in all the feathers, leather, fur and big hair that a boy playing dress up in his mother’s closet could ever dream of.

6. Wildcard Supporting Cast

Add into this already delicious mix an utterly strange combination of supporting actors. Ebony’s bandmate Marli is played by Rozanda “Chilli” Thomas of TLC who appears in full on over-the-top dominatrix gear. Follow that with ghosts of Christmas past (a snarky Kathy Griffin), present (John Taylor of Duran Duran) and future (a literal episode of VH1’s Behind the Music – how’s that for a throwback?). Then toss in some cameos from Nile Rodgers and Brian McKnight for good

7. Do I Feel a Heartquake?

For the icing on the cake, “A Diva’s Christmas Carol” is responsible for birthing one of the greatest fake 80s, holiday-adjacent, catchy AF songs by a non-existent girl group to ever come out of a television movie. Before striking solo, Ebony, Marli, and their friend Terry form the group Desire and hit big with their single “Heartquake.” The film weaves this pop gem throughout and I don’t know anyone that’s denied themselves the opportunity to hum along.

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At its core though, the message living inside its protagonist’s messiness still rings true. “A Diva’s Christmas” never goes too far into the deep end of its own dramatics before pulling back to remind us of its heart. It pushes us to find some meaning in the holiday season – that same corny, comfy feeling that makes me excited for the month of December each year – and allows us to imagine our own festive worlds where the hair reaches the heavens, the gowns cling tight, and divas reign supreme.

Joshua Henry Jenkins makes space and cultivates community. His work primarily focuses on amplifying the voices of those who are often living in the margins. Joshua is a digital strategist by profession, a designer and facilitator in the in-between, and a community organizer through and through. He currently serves as Director of Web and New Media at Americans for the Arts, Board Chair of the Arts Administrators of Color Network, and co-creator/co-facilitator of the BLACK, GAY, stuck at home series. www.joshuahenryjenkins.com

#granvarones #gay #queer #storytelling #afrolatinx #lgbtq #vanessa williams #christmas #a diva’s christmas carol #Youtube

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staliasjeronica · 4 years ago

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Riverdale S5 Ep3 Thoughts *Spoilers*

Thoughts on the episode under the cut! I literally can’t wait for us to all be free of Bughead. And I heard there were some Jeronica crumbs AHHHHHHH SCREAMING!!!

- OMG THE CALLBACK TO THE FIRST EPISODE. THE FIRST VOICE OVER. Beautiful. I love that so much.

- FP having to leave </3 I’m not ready to not see Falice

- Hiram looks good roughed up tbh

- Reinstating Sheriff Keller?! YESS. They were sleeping under the boxing ring??

- FRED NO PLEASE 💔💔💔 MY HEART. He really did miss graduation just like he said before 😭😭

- Also not Riverdale but why is there always an ad literally five minutes into the ep??? But at least the Joe Keery Taco Bell ad came on so… it’s okay!

- My family was so excited when I got my cap and gown and seeing Mary just… messing with it brings me back.

- The callbacks to s1 are gonna fuck me up aren’t they 😭😭 Cheryl crying is always so beautiful

- I had to miss most of Alice and Betty’s convo because my mom’s trach came out but Betty saying that thanksgiving would be the two of them LOL as if Betty cares about her mom’s feelings…

- I was thinking that the senior’s pictures in the capsule was gonna be someone’s relative so we could find out a little bit about Sweet Pea or Fangs’ families smh

- THE “SECONDARY” GROUP HANGING OUT TOGETHER YESS. THERE’S A SERPENT PAGE AHHH

- So Weatherbee can join a cult but when Archie is wrongfully accused of murder and then placed into an illegal boxing ring, no one gives him a break… irl they probably would have lol

- Sweet Pea and Reggie hugging idc they’re step bros. The Kangs kiss was kinda cute ngl WHY DIDN’T CHONI KISS? Veronica going up to Archie unsure what to do :(

- Veronica bringing back Archie’s stuff :((( why does VA have to break up first smh they’re the hotter couple.

- Them making out was so weird… like knowing Archie doesn’t want to be with her and Veronica doesn’t either… like I get it but still it looked so forced. I think it was on purpose which bodes well for their acting skills but-

- The entire idea of break up sex is so weird esp when it comest to cheating/lost feelings like why would you want to do that… BUT VERONICA LOOKS CUTE AF RN

- Jughead’s VO on V’s face, and Jughead looks good….

- TONI’S GRANDMOTHER. AND SWANGS, glad they remember their friendship exists. “including my girlfriend.” “We’re so proud of you, Toni.” AHH

- Archie watching everyone he cares about with their parents :(

- Still wondering how Betty is valedictorian… makes little sense. But her speech is good so I’ll let this fanservice slide I guess

- ARCHIE SINGING THE SONG MY CHOIR SANG FOR GRADUATION OH MY FUCKING GOD MY HEART

- Everyone looks so cute in their cap and gown!! Alice’s gaze at FP how sweet 🥺🥺

- Swangs! Reggie!! SP’s reaction to Reggie makes me again hc them as step bros and friends that is all.

- So sad but I feel so… enlightened. Like I did when I graduated.

- NOT PENELOPE… wait she’s giving herself in for Cheryl??? Since when has she ever cared about Cheryl… but she’s doing good so-

- JB in the fucking side car lmao

- Falice 💔 “îs this is? the end of our story?” STOP HEER SWIPING GHERE FINGERS OVER HIS LIPS FUCKKKK when they have the most romantic and passionate kisses over everybody, rivaling Barchie as they should!

- FP GETTING A RIDE ALONG WITH THE SERPENTS PLS

- It’s so annoying that there’s absolutely no Barchie whatsoever like they cheat and then give NOTHING???

- Veronica’s outfit is so fucking sexy

- Veronica handing over full ownership of Pop’s to Pop 🥺❤️ I love the most selfless woman in Riverdale. GOD. The way Pop’s is both her and Jughead’s home though.

- A bobby pin why-

- Josie’s cat ears 🥺❤️

- Keeping her serpent jacket and knowing she’ll be queen later yess.

- Cheryl is all of us “finally” NOW LET THE UGLY BEANIE STAY GONE.

- I think Jeronica is on the same step mmhm

- So all V’s reaction but not Betty’s…? The woman he loves? The woman who loves him? Betty supporting him no matter what though 🥺🥺

- Veronica being worried for Archie though I totally understand.

- Why isn’t Cheryl going to Highsmith? IF YOU DON’T GO, I WON’T GO. It’s amazing Cheryl is fixing the Blossom family name but couldn’t she also go to college…? NANA TOPAZ WANTING TO SEND CHONI CARE PACKAGES 😭😭 “Toni, you know I love you with every ounce of my soul.” I HATE THIS. “Don’t say it.” STOP STOP STOP “Then you never shall.”

- JUGHEAD ASKING ABOUT VERONICA MUAH TAKING MY CRUMBS

- JUGHEAD REALIZING TTHAT V DIDN’T KNOW WHAT ARCHIE WAS PLANNING.

- OMG IS BETTY FINALLY TELLING JUGHEAD YESS and he’s in her bed LMAO

- Betty you always say you should tell Jugheead when shit happens but you never do until you’re forced to. (aka Jughhead finding out) BUT LOL HIM NOT KISSING HER BACK. Nvm take us back to the VA sex scene…. it’s so dumb like at least break up sex makes sense for them but bh???

- So… they had Jeronica not care about being cheated on?????? lol ok

- Betty saying she should be with V so she wouldn’t have to say “Archie” after her revealing Barcheating

- V slap the fuck out of B now. WHY AREN’T YOU MAD AT BETTY? SHE LITERALLY—

- So what was the point of having Barchie cheat if no one was going to care or have any fallout… NORMAL HIGHSCHOOL ANGST? CHEATING ISN’T—

- Veronica looks so good though when she’s crying ugh we love a queen

- “I wish I had said goodbye to him” so they said that its would be someone you wouldn’t expect her to say it to and it was towards ARCHIE? What kind of actual bullshit???

- Not Archie’s main memories being with Veronica. He literally doesn’t love her anymore. This fucking show really did nothing with Barchie how fucked up is that. BUT HER WAVING TO HIM THAT WAS SO CUTE PLS

- “Barchie cheated and Archie doesn’t love V anymore.” “I LOVE YOU” literally… what the fuck is this show?

- “Don’t bro me.” ???

- They’re literally acting like Barchie never cheated. WHAT WAS THE POINT THEN??? God I wish the writers knew how to write.

- Jeronica wearing blue colors though muah

- BH IN THE SAME BED ALL SPLIT APART LMAOOOO. AND THE COUCH LOL bh break up say the words now

- Of course you’ll always love Betty, Jughead, she’s gonna be your step sister <3 for real this time

- THE COOPER’S ANYMORE…. when it was literally the Jones’ and the Cooper’s literally moved in with them. THE ANDREWS? The Bunker of course “honey I’m home” sjdkfahsjlfkak

- This is actually quite sad though. A little weird, but sad.

- But see how normal Jughead acts when he and Betty break up? I’ve been saying it!

- THE COUPLE LITERALLY BEING WHAT BARCHIE SHOULD HAVE BEEN!? Mmmhhm

- ADULT BARCHIE SLAPSSSSSSSS. Can’t wait for my Jeronica crumbs… can’t believe I’m actually saying Betty being FBI doesn’t seem that awful (yet, until it’s in every line and shoved down our throats)

#Riverdale #Thoughts #Spoilers

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clnriswood · 5 years ago

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ARCHIE ANDREWS X READER

Big Little Town: Part Two

a/n: hello! very long chapter incoming! this one is kind of world build-y but i promise after this it’s angst galore. lmk if you want to be on a tag list, love you all and can’t wait to keep writing!

There hadn’t been much unpacking progress that afternoon. The girl had been in a pretty much constant state of fear and mingled excitement, so the only thing she’d managed was making her oak framed bed up with thick patterned quilts, and her window with a wispy white curtain. Archie saw her bring it upstairs and hang it up, of course. She’d noticed him eyeing her discreetly from his desk, but he was polite enough to pretend not to see what she was doing. After that the drapes had stayed closed. Now, the girl was heaving other objects into her room as a last minute distraction, the current item in question being a large gold framed mirror that she leaned decoratively against the wall opposite her bed. Her mother had helped her bring it up, and now they both stood in front of the mirror, staring at themselves in the vast reflection.

“What do you think?” her mother smiled.

She looked at herself, thinking. She hadn’t changed since earlier, but there was now a visible panic sweat building on her brow.

“I think I’m going to piss myself,” she concluded.

“Oh!?” her mother gaped wih surprise, giving her a light slap.

“Sorry,” she grumbled, turning away and sitting defeatedly on the edge of her bed.

“Don’t say that. It’s a blessing, really,” said her mother, sinking down beside her and placing a hand to her knee. “You have people coming right to you to try and be your friend!”

“How is that a blessing?” she replied dumbly with a furrow of her brows.

“Well,” she tried gently, “you aren’t so good at approaching other people first.”

The girl shot her mother one of those daggered glares she’d gotten so good at.

“Nevermind,” her mother dropped it with a scoff.

The girl stared down at her scuffed up sneakers, tapping them together uneasily.

“She’ll be here soon.”

“She?”

“Betty,” the girl explained. “She’s picking me up to take me to Pop’s.”

“I thought Fred Andrew's boy was doing that?” her mother said with surprise. “Doesn’t that make more sense? He lives right ther-”

“No,” the girl said. “Betty offered first.”

Lie. Immediately after receiving Archie’s invitation he’d asked to take her over but she made something up about Betty taking her and then had to frantically text Betty and lie to her that Archie couldn’t take her and then had to ask her to bring her instead and then-

“You really are bad at this lying thing,” her mother concluded her thought for her.

The girl gaped in mock hurt, but then dropped the expression, too lazy to even try pretending her lie wasn’t, well, a lie.

Then there was a ring at the doorbell. It was distant, but still, struck a fearful cord that sure sounded loud in the girl’s ears. She stood up slowly, tucking her phone into her jean’s tight back pocket and attempting to suck in a confident breath.

“Shame,” her mother’s cheeky words followed her out the room, “I wanted to see how much that Archie boy had grown.”

Thank goodness her back was to her mother as she descended the creaky stairs or she would’ve been in for a whirlwind of questions concerning the absolute red that seeped into her daughter’s cheeks.

. . .

Betty drove a little blue car that was, honestly, a little messy. Not that she was judging, it was just unexpected to see the neat blonde with a book scattered and paper strewn backseat. There was even a bundle of red yarn, like she was going crime solving or something. The thought made the girl laugh to herself. Yeah right.

The car was pretty quiet, (Y/N) thinking of her mother’s remark at her inability to approach people first, one which seemed very relevant at the moment.

“So, what sort of things are you looking forward to at school?” Betty finally broke the silence with some easy conversation.

The girl’s eyes flickered as she watched the flare of passing headlights, responding, “I hear you guys have a good music program?”

“Oh yeah,” Betty flashed her straight white teeth. “I’m awful at that stuff. Archie is great though!”

“Yeah I-” the girl shook her head and wrinkled her nose with embarrassment, “I know I… I used to know Archie. And you, kind of.”

Betty tapped her fingers on the steering wheel, not wanting to be rude but having no indication of who the girl was in her memory.

“I’m (Y/N),” she said, “which you know already. But my full name is (Y/N/) (Y/L/N).”

Betty repeated her full name slowly, trying to see if it rang any bells. She tried again but nothing stirred. She repeated it once more, and it took a second for it to actually hit her.

“OH MY GOD!” she hit the brakes with surprise, her blonde pony swinging.

She turned to get a look at the girl, a good look this time. Her perfect pink lips dropped open.

“You’re-” she shook her head, searching for the right words. Then she settled on gorgeous. “Not that you weren’t before,” she explained quickly, her lashes fluttering, “you’ve just changed a lot.”

Betty turned her big blue eyes slowly back to the road and started driving again with a short little laugh.

“Thanks,” the girl said bashfully, unsure of how else to reply. “You haven’t. Changed, I mean. You were always really cute.”

Betty let out an ugly snort, making the girl’s lips stretch wide into a smile.

“What?!”

“Please,” Betty scoffed. “I was not cute. I was embarrassing. I thought I was going to grow up to be either a princess, the president, or both simultaneously.”

“Are you kidding? That’s still my dream,” she joked, making Betty release a sweet airy laugh.

Sure enough, the girl found herself warming quickly to Betty Cooper.

“I was actually jealous of you, y’know?” Betty said as she turned her head to look at the girl with a grin.

“What? Me!?” she chortled. “Me, the weirdo with no friends?”

Betty shook her head, eyes back on the road now, “one friend.”

And just like that, the panic sweat was back.

“Archie?” she said nervously.

“Yeah, little Archie,” Betty rolled her eyes, “I had the biggest crush on him when we were kids.”

The girl gave a nod, twirling a piece of hair nervously around her index finger. Huh, looks like there was competition for her childhood crush. She couldn’t blame Betty for liking him. Any little girl with two eyes would’ve. Not wanting to sound too obvious, she asked, “do you still?”

Betty ugly snorted again, and then scolded herself for the reaction.

“Don’t tell Archie I laughed at him for that.”

“Believe me I won’t,” the girl chuckled.

“I’ll always love that boy but we’re very different people,” Betty explained, pulling up to the diner. “Plus I’ve got Jughead, and he’s got Ronnie.”

The girl was so busy absorbing the flickering neon lights of Pop’s famous (in her mind) Diner, that it took her a second to process what was just said or what it meant at all.

“What’s a Jughead?” she said stupidly to herself.

Betty just smiled and opened her door, the girl blindly following after her. It had been so long since she’d been to the diner, but not much had changed, other than it looked like it’d had a fresh coat of paint and someone had finally fixed that dreadful buzzing light in the “n” of the sign. The girl tripped nervously behind Betty into the diner, the door letting loose a little jingle as they stepped in. Unlike the cool night air they’d just briefly been exposed to, Pop’s was filled with a warmth and delicious sugary smell that made the girl salivate at once. A feeling of absolute nostalgia swept over her, one so strong Betty had to shake her out of it.

“(Y/N), hey, they’re over here.”

She snapped out of it, hair whirling around her shoulders as she turned to her left, eyes landing on a nearby booth where three people sat. One was a black haired boy in a beanie who sat with his legs up against the table but shifted upwards with a smile when he saw Betty. That must be the boy she’d just referred to as an it, she thought to herself. Then there was a raven haired girl in a sleek black dress who sat about as prim and properly as a person could in a plastic-y diner booth. Ronnie, she presumed. And then there was Archie Andrews. Archie Andrews with the beautiful brown eyes that were glued indiscreetly to her. Archie Andrews with his arm around the stunning girl beside him.

“Fuck,” the girl began to whisper, but then, catching their eye, let the word buzz out into nothingness as she gave them all a big fake smile hello.

“Jug, Veronica, this is (Y/N),” Betty introduced the girl politely.

“Pleasure,” Veronica offered a hand, Jughead giving her a nod of acknowledgement.

She took her hand awkwardly as Betty pulled her up a chair to sit at the end of the table.

Oh good, like she could fifth wheel any harder.

“And Archie, you know (Y/N)!?” Betty beamed.

Archie’s eyes sparkled with knowing as he gave a nod, one the girl barely caught as she looked away quite quickly. Up close he was even more terrifying. And by terrifying she meant handsome. And by handsome she meant terrifying. A loose red strand of hair fell in front of Archie’s enthralled stare, and he was too dumbfounded to do anything about it, so Veronica fixed it up for him, making him snap out of his short lived trance. He moved his eyes over to his girlfriend, giving her a half smile.

“What’ll we be having?” a kind voice interrupted them.

The girl looked up into the eyes of none other than Pop himself. He wore the same old Pop’s uniform and the same old smile. He had that glorious Santa Clause twinkle in his eyes, and just the jolly Santa Clause laugh to go with it.

“My my, if it isn’t (Y/N),” he shook his head.

“You remember me?!” she said with both surprise and flattery.

Pop gave her a pat on the shoulder, addressing the group, “this girl used to come in every afternoon, sit right up on those stools that were too tall for her little legs, and order an extra-chocolate chocolate milkshake,” he smiled. Then, looking down, he chuckled, “how could I forget?”

She looked up at him with a huge grin, “you never did tell me your secret.”

“Ah, you’re old enough now,” he shrugged, “it was an extra brownie.”

“What?!” her mouth fell open, “that was it!? But you’d go back there and make it seem like you were doing this big magical thing-”

“Extra brownie,” he cut her off with a proud little wheeze, to which she shook her head. “I presume it’ll be the same for tonight, right?”

She scoffed, crossing her legs in her chair and sitting up a little better, “right.”

Pop nodded, “good to have you back, kiddo.”

The girl turned back slowly to face the others, who of course were all staring at her. There was a shared expression amongst them that she couldn’t place. They didn’t speak for a few seconds. Then it was Jughead who finally said what they were all thinking.

“You’ll let us try that thing, right?”

She let out a sigh of relief, and then a laugh and a shake of her head, “of course.”

. . .

Once they’d all passed the milkshake around the table once, every person had come to the same conclusion: this girl had taste. Then they’d all ordered themselves a round of her extra-chocolate chocolate milkshakes, even Archie. As she took sips of the delicious sugary goodness, it felt like social fuel being pumped into her lungs. She bonded with Jughead over their interest in fiction, Veronica over their interest in fashion, Betty with everything, and Archie with nothing, since she didn’t really speak to him. The neon lights of the diner sent a warm pink glow over the group, flushing their skin with the retro aura that made Riverdale what it was.

“A cracktown in the middle of the forest,” Jughead had decided to call it.

“Jug,” Betty hit her hand to her forehead with a laugh.

“No, seriously (Y/N) you wouldn’t believe the crap that happens here,” Jughead said, tossing a brownie chunk in his mouth.

“Relax, Jones,” Veronica said. “Don’t go scaring off our new girl so soon.”

The girl smiled a confused smile, unaware of what subtext she was missing out on.

Changing topic, Veronica asked what she might be looking forward to at school.

“Oh, um, the music,” she responded for the second time that night, averting Archie’s eyes as she did so. “I play guitar.”

“Do you now?” Veronica arched a sharp brow. “So does this ginger stallion beside me.”

Veronica grabbed Archie’s large arm and gave it an encouraging squeeze.

He nodded, and she made direct eye contact with him for only the second time that evening. His eyes softened when he caught her looking, making her stomach turn. Not that either would say it, but she was the one who had taught him to play, something they both recalled. He cracked the tiniest of smiles for her, making her forget how to breathe as she found herself suddenly very interested in the bottom of her milkshake glass. An awkward silence, the first and only of the night, ensued.

Veronica, feeling responsible for it, said, “well it’s late. I should be heading home before daddy worries.”

The girl had to pinch herself under the table to keep herself from laughing at whatever the hell had just been said. She raised her jaw to give Veronica a smile, the group rumbling with mutual chatter and goodbye’s as she parted without Archie, who she apparently called Archiekins.

“Me too,” Jughead said, “not because of my daddy issues,” he clarified. “I have a paper to write.”

“I’ll take you back,” Betty said, helping her boyfriend out of the seat after her. He leaned up and planted a kiss to her cheek as he stood, wrapping an arm around her.

It was kind of a funny sight to see the pink clad blonde girl with the black clad emo boy, but they did seem a good pair. The two stared at her.

“(Y/N), you coming?” Betty smiled.

The girl was far too nervous to even acknowledge Archie for a goodbye as she stood, making a clamor and hitting her knees on the table, “yeah.”

She barely got a step away before Archie cut the group off.

“Actually-” he started

They all turned to look at him.

His eyes were now fixated right on the girl, and confidently. Not that they weren't before, just that he seemed a little unsure of how to act around her up until the given moment, for whatever reason. He had his legs spread apart now, shoulders comfortably back against the crimson backside of the booth.

“I’ll take you,” he said.

“Well-” she protested.

But he wasn’t having it this time.

He did this incredibly frustrating blink smile thing at her that made her heart do somersaults.

“I’ll take her,” he said again, firmly, and to the others this time.

Feeling trapped, the girl turned to Betty for guidance. But Betty, being Betty, just smiled.

“Have fun you two.”

She felt like she was being abandoned by her new sister and her sister’s edgy boyfriend, helpless as they walked hand and hand away from her. She kept her back to Archie long after they left, too scared to turn. Her heels were glued together, and she raised her chin up to stare into the blazing lights above in a failed attempt to make the nightmare end. Then, slowly, she tilted her head, enough to address him without looking properly.

“After you.”

. . .

Archie drove an old truck that made strange noises when it ran but felt homey nonetheless. The seats were faded and it smelt of must and what she presumed to be his own scent, which was a kind of mingled sweat and dark cologne mixture that she strangely liked. An old CD was crammed into the car’s disk drive, and it hummed out low rock music that soothed the girl’s nerves. For a while, neither of them spoke, but it was he who finally broke the silence.

“Sorry,” Archie huffed lightly as the girl studied her void surroundings.

It was pitch black on the roads, and she had her head pressed to the cool glass as she stared into the inky black of the night. Archie had rolled his window down so that an icy breeze rolled up onto her skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps.

“For what?” she spoke softly into the surface of the glass, her knees against the door.

“Oh, I know it’s not much,” the red haired boy said, moving his eyes between the road and the girl beside him.

“I like it,” she smiled, tilting her head to look at him and flashing her teeth.

Archie’s lips curled upwards, “yeah?”

He stared at her, his own teeth bright white against the darkness of his car.

“You think I wouldn’t?” she said, moving her knees from the door to facing forwards.

“Well,” he shrugged, “some people in this town have very expensive tastes.”

“Mmm?” she challenged, wiggling a brow at him. “And you think that includes me, Archiekins?”

She’d said the last word with the best Veronica impersonation she could manage; it was awful.

Archie let out a short loud laugh that he then stifled with his free hand. He leaned back further against his seat, relaxing his shoulders and keeping one hand lazily planted to the steering wheel as he shook his gorgeous red hair with amusement.

“I don’t know,” he laughed, his large eyes glimmering as the passing car lights shone in them. “You could’ve changed.”

“Yeah right,” the girl said, easing up and turning so that her back was now fully against the passenger door and her front was pointed directly at the boy.

Archie’s face flashed with some expression she couldn’t make out.

“What?” she prodded him.

“I don’t know, is it so hard to believe?” he shrugged, tilting his head to look briefly down at her.

She averted his eyes instantly. So apparently she wasn’t fully accustomed to him quite yet.

“What do you mean?” she asked the road.

“I mean-” he started, squinting his eyes and swaying his head as he selected his next words, “you’ve definitely changed.”

“Hm?” she said with mild surprise, turning back to look at him and feeling her heart skip a beat when she saw that he was still right there, staring back at her where she’d left him.

Archie didn’t know how to explain verbally, so he just kind of lingered his eyes very curiously on her before moving them slowly back to the road. He suppressed a smile with a bite of his cheek, making her frustrated.

“What?” she snapped.

“There’s not a very gentlemanly way of putting it,” he rolled his head attractively to look back down at her, smirking.

Her raised brows very slowly settled as she realized what he meant, her face burning with embarrassment as she turned it back to the outdoors and prayed he couldn’t make out her expression. So what, he just pointed out that she looked different. But what was that supposed to mean? She had to pinch her thighs to gather herself.

“So then who's to say you haven’t completely changed?” she finally responded in a cool tone.

“If it isn’t obvious by the dump on wheels that I drive,” he laughed, “me.”

“Really?” she taunted, mimicking his seductive head roll and blinking sweetly up at him, “I think you’ve definitely changed.”

Archie snorted and crinkled his nose adorably, tapping the girl off with his shoulders playfully, “hey.”

He wore this inquisitive smile as he turned quickly to look at her. He wanted her to elaborate on what she’d meant, but she just left him hanging like he’d done to her.

“Well,” he decided with a slow exhale, “I’m kind of relieved, to be honest.”

“Why?” she asked, taking his focus on the road as time to study the perfect curvatures of his cheeks, jaws, and lips.

“I’m glad you’re still, you know, you,” he said. “Sweet. Sassy. Kind of scary.”

She knocked his elbow with her own, “shut it Andrews.”

He opened his lips just wide enough to flash the edges of his jutted canines, “there she is.”

She couldn’t help but giggle, moving her legs and folding them to sit crossed legged in his seat. Archie didn’t seem remotely surprised.

“Yeah well, are you still the Archie Andrews I know?” she asked.

“Mmph,” Archie puffed lowly, “you could say that.”

“Elaborate,” she said.

“A lot has happened since you left. So, no. But, also yes? I’m still me underneath everything, I just think that a lot of people forget that... including me,” he explained somberly.

“Oh,” she frowned, “troubled past?”

He laughed bitterly, “like you wouldn’t believe.”

“I might,” she said, squishing her lips together with curiosity.

Archie shook his head with concealed hurt, not knowing where to start. He took a minute to himself before replying, during which he pulled up to their street and into his driveway.

“My dad passed away this year,” he decided.

“Oh,” the girl’s heart dropped.

She used to see Fred all the time when he and Mrs. Andrews would get Archie from school. She’d even written him the personalized essay on why he should get Archie his first guitar, and it had worked. Hurt but not knowing how to reply, she just stared at him, but he wasn’t looking back.

“I’m sorry,” she settled lamely.

“Me too,” Archie turned finally, resting his upset eyes on her, “about your dad.”

“Oh?” she said, taken aback.

“I mean,” he explained, “I knew back then, obviously. But I never said anything about it. I didn’t want you to think I judged you for it.”

“Honestly it’s fine,” she shook her head.

“No,” he cut her off, “because now I know what it feels like. To be the kid with the dad who died. Everyone treats you differently, like you’re, I don’t know, a victim. So nobody talks about it, it’s like they think I’ll self-destruct if they do,” his eyes settled in his lap. “And I don’t want that. I just want my dad.”

Her shoulders slumped with sadness, brows knitting as she leaned forward for his hand. She stopped though, not sure of if that was okay, so she asked.

“Can I?” she half whispered, tapping her fingers against Archie’s hand, which was still clutched tightly to his gear shift.

He just gave a little nod yes.

His hand was shaking a little when she reached for it, so she reassuringly wrapped her fingers around it, like in one of those friend hand holds where you don’t lock fingers. Archie wordlessly stopped her, nudging her fingers aside so he could lace his long fingers through her own. It took her aback, but there was no denying she preferred it. Kind of enthralled at the sight, she just looked at their hands together, hers much smaller and colder, feeling safe entangled in his. And his hands felt good. Rough. Warm. Familiar. Realizing it’d been the first time they’d actually touched in years, she felt her throat go hard. Archie seemed to pick up on it too, because when she lifted her gaze he was looking at her, kind of flickering his eyes back and forth between her own. She felt her heart pick up, thumping loudly in her ears, her blood filled with a faint electricity. But this time she didn’t look away. It felt too good to. So she let Archie do it, though he looked reluctant to do so. He retracted his hand timidly, making her instantly go cold without it.

“Hey,” he started softly, “are we okay?”

She stared at him with a slightly tilted head, “of course, why?”

“Well,” he said nervously, “You kind of shut me out with those curtains before. And then I got a text from Betty saying she was taking you to Pop’s at the last minute, which was weird because I’d already offered. And, well, you didn’t speak to me at all until ten minutes ago.”

He said it all to his knees instead of to her face, his lips curled into a frown.

The girl closed her eyes in embarrassment, shaking her head, “I’m sorry. It’s not what you think.”

When she opened them again he was looking at her, awaiting her next words.

She gulped nervously. It wasn’t exactly like she could admit she’d been hit full force with a suppressed wave of years of her own pent up frustration and feelings when she saw him.

“I just,” she sighed, rubbing a thumb nervously over her wrist “I was afraid.”

“Of what?” he replied with surprise.

“You,” she admitted, settling for the partial truth. “I hadn’t seen you in so long and I didn’t know how much had changed or if you’d-” she shook her head, pausing, “if new Archie would still like me.”

He released an airy laugh, “are you kidding (Y/N)(Y/L/N)?”

That threw her off guard. Back in the day he had often called her by her full name. Whether sweet or stupid, she had never decided. But this time it definitely felt sweet.

“No I’m not, Archie Andrews,” she said slowly back, drawing her gaze away.

That made him grin that damn grin that drove her insane.

“I could never stop liking you,” he promised with enough sincerity to make her look up again. “Promise.”

She smiled timidly, “how am I supposed to get that when I’m being dragged into a new friend group the very night I’m moving back into town?” she said. “I mean, they’re lovely of course,” she defended, “but you can’t blame me for being nervous.”

Archie squinted his eyes, taking in her words before deciding, “you're right.”

“I am?” she said with a confused laugh.

“Yes,” he nodded. “I know you, and I should’ve known better than to think that was your thing.”

He wasn’t wrong.

“And I promise,” he added, “next time it’ll be just us.”

She blinked at the fiery redhead with mingled hope and nervousness, “yeah?”

“Yeah,” he said, tilting his head forward with an encouraging smile. “Tomorrow I’ll come over and help you unpack. And then after we can do whatever you want, and you can catch me up on everything I missed,” he beamed.

Seeing him get so excited to spend time with her practically sent her off the deep end, her heart feeling like it was being squeezed out by Archie himself. She beamed back at him, making him smile, if possible, even wider.

“Wait,” she realized, feeling upset wash over her, “aren’t you supposed to see Veronica tomorrow?”

“Oh,” Archie said, knitting his brows, “it’s alright. I’m sure she’ll understand me helping out an old friend.”

Ouch. It was sweet, but still, she couldn’t help the sting that came with “old friend.”

“Really?” the girl asked.

“Of course,” he reassured.

She nodded nervously, feeling incredibly grateful to have him back. So she told him.

“I’m really happy to have you back.”

He let his lips fall into a content close, his chocolate eyes twinkling, “I’m happy to have you back too.”

The two stared at each other, an awkward quiet ensuing, neither sure of what to say next. Both luckily and unluckily, the girl’s front porch light snapped on, making both of them jump. The girl’s mother was by the door, and she was waving down Archie’s truck.

“Oh my god,” the girl said with horror, “Archie run.”

But he wasn’t listening. In fact, he was halfway out the truck.

“No way, Mrs. (Y/L/N)!?” he said cheerfully, extending his hand as he walked out to meet her halfway.

The girl cursed under her breath as she climbed out the vehicle, so appalled she could barely look.

“Archie!” her mom said, hobbling over in her pink robe.

She shook the boy’s hand, marvelling at what a handsome young man he was.

The girl’s sneakers crunched over the grass and leaves as she stood beside them, her eyes darting between the exchange and the ground but unsure of where to stay.

“Last time I saw you you were just a tiny little thing with a football twice the size of your head!” she chortled.

“And last time I saw you you looked just as youthful Mrs. (Y/L/N),” Archie replied.

Damn that boy was smooth.

Her mother clearly enjoyed it, voicing, “always an angel, Archie.”

The porch and moon’s light combined sent shadows over their faces, crickets chirping obnoxiously as her mother patted Archie off with a laugh. They made small talk that was frankly too unbearable for the girl, so she wordlessly slipped off and into the house before they could say anything. As soon as she got in she bolted up the stairs, hands running through her hair nervously and back hitting the door of her room once she was safe inside. She sucked in a few breaths, eyes fluttering as she processed the catastrophe occuring downstairs, and just generally in her life. A minute later she heard the front door close, and her mother yelled up something that sounded like an indistinct “well gosh I get what you mean now!” That only embarrassed the girl further, making her slide down against her door with a groan. Thank God her drapes were closed so Archie didn’t see it all happening. Well, speaking of…

The girl slowly opened her eyes, lifting her body from the ground with a sigh. She stood, staring at her curtains. She could see light flooding in from the other side, meaning Archie was now in his room. Sucking in a slow breath, she tucked her long hair behind her ears and approached her curtains slowly. Her face was expressionless as she felt for the fabric, her heart just a little too fast as she timidly pulled it aside.

There was Archie, breathtaking as ever. He sat on the edge of his bed, phone resting in his hands like he was contemplating using it. But then, feeling her bedroom light flood over to his side of the divide, Archie looked up with knowing. She still had one hand holding the drapes, the other loosely by her side, clutching her own phone. Archie stared at her with a happily taken aback expression, his chest heaving lightly against his white tee, his hands steady as they unlocked his phone. The auburn haired boy looked at her for a second, then down at his phone as he typed away a message. Then he looked back up. Her phone screen lit up at once.

No goodbye?

She chuckled, looking up in time to catch him smile with a tilt of his brows.

The girl typed back.

Sorry. Too rough down there, had to get out.

This time Archie laughed.

Goodnight, (Y/N) (Y/L/N).

She smiled.

Goodnight, Archie Andrews.

He didn’t text back after that, he just stepped forward and reached for his own blinds, tilting his head at her in a wordless goodbye. Neither wanted to be the first to shut the other out, so instead they just closed their blinds together, the last thing she caught being the ever so faint twitch of Archie’s content lips.

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