~General POV~
Jughead knocked on the door of the Cooper's house, waiting for his best friend to appear in the doorway. But...what if she had changed her mind? Before Jughead's mind could wander too far, the door opened, presenting a casually dressed Betty Cooper with a smile on her face. Jughead's eyes wandered up and down her body as if he had never seen her like this before, and a blush made its way to the surface of Betty's skin.
"Too casual?" Betty asked shyly. Jughead grinned at her and shook his head. He then extended his arm to her.
"C'mon. I brought the truck and we gotta go," he said. Betty took his arm and he led her away from the house.
"No bike, Jug?" Betty asked.
Jughead turned to her. "Why? What's wrong with the truck?"
"Nothing! I just like your bike."
"Well, I'll bring it next time," Jughead answered.
Betty shot him a look. "What makes you think there'll be a 'next time?'"
"Who said there wouldn't be?" Jughead stated pointedly. "Besides, who'd wanna give all this up?" he said, gesturing to himself. Betty slapped him on the chest and he chuckled. He then ran around front of her and opened the passenger door.
"Ladies first," he said with a smirk.
"Why thank you!" Betty said teasingly at his sweet actions. He grinned a stupid grin, which then caused her to grin right back at him. "Stop it, you dork." He laughed and closed the door. He hopped over the back of truck and slid into the driver's seat.
"Let us make haste!" Jughead said in a medival-like voice. Almost as if he was a knight proclaiming something to a large crowd.
"Let's." Jughead smiled and started the engine. The two ventured out to their destination.
~
Jughead cut the engine and ran around to let Betty out. He had told her to keep her eyes closed as they neared the end of the ride. "Can I open my eyes now?" Betty whined impatiently.
"Okay hold onnnn..." Jughead led Betty forward. She could hear the sounds of cars and feel the moisture in the wind. "Juggie, is this safe?"
"Do you trust me?" he asked.
"Yes. With my life."
"Of course, Sherlock. If it wasn't safe, I wouldn't bring you here." Betty laughed and waved her arms around, trying to make contact with something. But Jughead had stepped out of the way, laughing. "You can open your eyes now."
Betty opened her eyes and saw the tall structure of the fun center. She turned to her date. "Juggie! You brought us back?"
"Well, Ms. Cooper, I believe I owe you an ass-whooping," Jughead teased from behind her.
"Very funny. But you're the one who's getting that. You're with me, remember?"
"How could I forget?" Betty blushed at his words and turned away from him. Jogging to the doors. Jughead was right behind, and she opened the door.
"Ladies first," she said, bowing playfully. He crossed his arms over his chest.
"Very funny," he said to her. He walked through the door anyway, not saying thank you. Betty shook her head and laughed before following him inside.
"So, what are we doing anyway? Air hockey again?" Betty asked him.
"Not tonight," he replied and kept walking.
Betty continued to follow him. "Bowling? Laser tag? Arcade games?"
"No, no, and no," he said. The pair reached a wooden door and Jughead opened it and waved Betty inside. The room had sleek wooden walls and a large, polished billiard table at the center. Betty ran her hand along the sleek wooden edges and looked to the wall. Mounted on the wall were varieties of sizes of cue sticks lined up from shortest to tallest.
Betty heard the door shut, and turned to Jughead, who had his arms extended in a 'what do you think?' gesture. Betty picked up the white cue ball from its place on the table and rolled it around in her hands.
"Pool table?"
"Well I figured," he said, walking up to her, "we should bring the online games of 8-ball we have to life!" She smirked.
"Game on. I'll break." Betty sauntered over to the wall and grabbed a stick. The cue ball was set at the middle of the table, ready to be hit. Betty positioned herself at the right side of the table, aiming straight for the center. There was a pause, and she bent really low toward the table, trying to see where everything was. She jerked the stick forward, and the triangle of balls broke out in all directions, clacking together as they rolled to their new destinations.
"Nice break," Jughead commented.
"Why thank you!" Betty replied in mock enthusiasm. Jughead rolled his eyes and grabbed a stick as well,
moving to the left side of the table, aiming for the upper-right hand pocket. He fired, and the white cue ball knocked the red ball of stripes inside.
~Betty's POV~
"I'm stripes, you're solid."
"Fine," I comment back. He goes in for another shot, hitting the blue and green striped balls into different holes. He went for the orange of stripes, but it missed the hole and ricocheted far away.
I chuckled, lining up my shot at a yellow ball. I hit, and it went in. Soon, I had the orange, blue, and purple balls all in the different holes. I took aim for the red-orange ball and leaned really close to the table. I held really still, trying to hit it at just the right angle. The room was silent...
Accept for Jughead's loud breathing.
"Dude!" Jughead's head whipped around to face me. "Can you stop fucking hyperventilating over there? I'm trying to concentrate!"
"First off, I'm breathing normally," he retorted, "and secondly, what, you just want me to not breathe?"
"That'd be great thanks." He rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall once more. I shook my head and went back to my position again, solely concentrating on the ball in front of me. I slowly drew back the stick, ready to fire.
And a loud inhale cane from right next to my ear. I snapped, and the white cue ball hit the red-orange ball and rolled into the middle-right pocket. "Shit!" I turned to Jughead, who was laughing hysterically. "Son of a bitch!" Jughead's laughter stopped and he looked at her.
"As a matter of fact, she is."
"Oh," Betty replied, a bit surprised. Not the reaction she was expecting. The mood in the room shifted and went slightly tense and awkward.
"Hey, hey it's okay. I'm over it. She may as well have never been my mother in the first place." I nodded solemnly at his words, feeling pity for him and regret that I ever brought it up. Jughead walked over to me and embraced me, and I returned the hug even tighter.
"I'm sorry, Jug."
"Not your fault." I rested my head on his chest, hearing the rapid beats of his heart. I smiled and giggled a little, then felt a rumble in his chest.
I pulled away. "Now, I believe I still owe you an ass-whooping."
Jughead smirked at me. "Bring it on, Cooper."
~General POV~
Time passed, celebratory dances were done, and mock insults were thrown around. A few so absurd, they had to stop the game a few times to get the laughs out of their systems. But now, the table was clear of any balls except for the infamous 8-ball.
"Your move, Betts," Jughead said tiredly. They had been hitting the 8-ball around for a while. But their aim was always just a little bit off.
"Yeah," she replied. She leaned down towards the table again for the fourth time, ready to shoot and miss. She closed one eye. Studying the table very carefully, she fired, and the cue ball hit the 8 ball, veering off to her selected corner of the table. She stood up, ready for Jughead to take his next turn. But then heard the clack of the resin billiard balls. She whipped her head around, seeing only a white cue ball on the table.
"OHHHHHHHHHHHH! YES! FINALLY!" Betty continued to jump up and down, cheering and screaming. Meanwhile, Jughead was watching the table intently.
"Betts," he said quietly. She stopped jumping, face slightly red.
"What?" she asked breathlessly. He nodded to the table, and she returned her gaze to the green fabric. The cue ball was still moving, right to the middle-right hole.
"No...nononononooo!" Betty yelled. But the cue ball kept moving.
"C'mon, c'mon," Jughead urged. The spinning ball was coming to a stop, but it may not stop in time.
And the ball slowed and stopped.
Right on the edge of the hole.
"FUCK YEAH, HAHA!" Betty cheered. Jughead just stared at the ball in disbelief. How could his luck run out when he was so close?
"SUCK IT!" Betty yelled in his face.
"How about you suck it?" Jughead spat playfully.
"Gladly." Betty started to kneel down.
Jughead stepped back. "NO."Betty went into a fit of hysterical laughter, falling onto the floor. Jughead stared at her for a bit, before starting to laugh as well. He joined her on the floor, but made a gentle landing. The continued to laugh for another five minutes. Betty recovered first and sat up, drying her eyes with her hand. She let out a few more broken laughs before laughing some more. Jughead sat up and joined her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him, warming up immediately.
"I am still reigning 8 Ball Champion," Betty said with a smile.
Jughead returned her smile. "Indeed you are." He planted a kiss on her forehead, moved down to the tip of her nose, and then her lips. They both smiled, and both started chuckling ever so slightly.
"So, are we on for next week?" asked Jughead, getting up from the floor and offering her a hand.
"Of course!" Betty took his hand and found herself pulled flush against him. She giggled, feeling her neck and face warm.
"Well, your call, Cooper." Betty thought for a moment, and finally found the perfect answer.
"How about..."