disentombs | Duplicity inbox

Did he come here before you? [He looks back at her, trying his best to be honest with her without speaking for Jughead. He does like the guy after all.]

Just a few weeks before me.

Perhaps it's leftover from when you weren't here and he hadn't found the right time to tell you.

Not quite an excuse, but a possible explanation.

It was after I was here. [ Her fingers adjust her sleeves, making sure they are pulled down still.] He said he did it because I made him promise.

[Gansey follows her movements and notices how she pulls her sleeves down but doesn't dwell on it too long.]

Clearly some miscommunication happened. You can drive yourself insane with the mental gymnastics it takes to blame yourself, or you can acknowledge your feelings on the matter and see if Jughead's apology or explanation alleviate what you're feeling at all.

He left. [ she murmurs, looking ahead with a sigh.] He went back to the Down so he could clear his head or something. [ Instead of trying to talk it out, he left her alone in their home here to fret and wallow. And she's hating every minute of it.] So all I can do is sit and think about it because he won't talk to me, because I want to give him the space he needs but I don't really want to do that at all.

[He frowns slightly. Oh Jughead.]

We could always continue our investigation, if you're looking for something to do, you know. It sounds like you need a distraction more than anything.

[ There's a thought that rises in the back of her mind just then, when he says she needs a distraction. She does need one and the darker part of her wants to do something to even the score between her and Jughead, to prove to him that she isn't that perfect girl he still clearly has on some kind of pedestal, a girl that needs protecting or needs to be lied to.

But there's the other side of her that whispers that it's unfair to Gansey, to use him in that way. He's been a good friend. She nods at his words, one hand lifting to brush some hair behind her ear and perhaps he might catch sight of the wounds on her palms, if he's looking at her.]

At this point, I'll take any distraction which is why I thought we could apply for the library jobs today.

Edited 2019-01-21 03:13 (UTC)

[He's watching closer than she probably gives him credit for. Immediately on seeing her hand, he reaches out and takes it, examines it, runs a thumb over the healing wounds.

Gansey looks back at her, concern furrowing between his eyebrows.]

Betty...

[ He catches her off guard, so she isn't fast enough to pull her hand away from him before it's too late. He gets a good view of the healing, half-moon shaped cuts on her palms. There's only two this time instead of four but they aren't exactly discreet nor can she just explain them away.

Shame burns her cheeks and she swallows thickly.]

I... I get overwhelmed sometimes. [ Her lips press together and she looks down at her hand.] I think I'm just broken.

Edited 2019-01-21 04:11 (UTC)

[He steps in front of her and puts a hand on her shoulder, frowning slightly.]

You're not broken. You need a break. From this situation, from what was going on at home [referring to the memory he saw], just about everything.

[It's wishful thinking of course. This place is extremely stressful.]

[ When he touches her, she looks up at him, unable to look away this time.] And how do you propose I do that? [ it's not asked in anger but in exhaustion.]

A vacation. Maybe to the beach. Ocean waves are quite relaxing.

[He's grinning a bit--half facetious half not. She really could use a getaway.]

[ Betty has been learning Gansey's different smiles. As someone who puts on a facade for others, she'd picked up on the fact that he did the same after seeing his memory of his friend Ronan. And to be honest, even though he'd been friendly with her, she hadn't been sure if she'd ever seen his real smile before.

This smile is different, it's not one she's seen before and she feels herself being drawn closer to this boy who promises her comfort, who is part Archie and part Jughead. He reminds her of a time before Jason Blossom's murder, a time when she'd been in love with Archie Andrews and she was the girl next door and murder wasn't in her blood.

He reminds her of good things and he smells like mint. Her heart aches and she wonders what it would be like to be with a boy like him. Would it be like summertime adventures and milkshakes at Pop's? Would it be like there was no darkness inside her? It'd be like that comforting facade she couldn't keep with Jughead because he saw through her (Gansey sees through her too).

But his answer is so ridiculous and simple it makes her start to laugh. The sort of laughter that you can't stop once it starts. Laughter that keeps going until you start to cry because laughter feels almost wrong when your heart hurts as much as it does.]

[He can feel his chest ache when he sees her laugh. She looks so much better with a smile on her face. This girl that reminds him so much of himself, that struggles to alleviate herself of responsibility, that tries to live up to this image that people have of them...when here, as much of a hell as it is, they don't have to.

And just as easily, the ache feels like a vise when he can see tears streaming. Did he do that? Something about making her laugh that made her feel worse? He's not sure he knows how to respond to this situation. It's not so much a thought as an instinct as he steps forward and cups her cheeks in both hands, using his thumbs to brush away tears. Still, his body seemingly moves on its own to try and make those tears stop.

He leans in and gently presses his lips to hers.]

[ She is not so sad that a smile rarely graces her features but it's been a little harder to laugh and smile here with everything that's happened, after everything she's witnessed and the weight this place makes them all carry.

It wasn't that he made her feel worse, it's just a flood of emotions that she'd been desperately trying to keep at bay. Sure, she'd cried and felt upset but something about laughing, something about that absolutely natural and freeing action made it easier for her to feel everything else. His joke had reminded her how ridiculous this place was, if you stepped back and looked at it. How insane it was. How could you not laugh or cry or both?

She'd feel guilty for worrying him later but right now, there's something else to focus on. There's the shock of his lips against her own, silencing her laughing sobs, his hands so warm on her face.

There's a startled moment before she sort of melts into the kiss, her hands reaching out blindly for his jacket, fingers curling into the fabric. And she can't help but wonder if this was what Jughead was seeking out with Lucy? A balm to his pain and frustration, some kind of beacon to guide him through the darkness of this place. Because how could Betty be his light in the darkness anymore? She was a part of the darkness.

Kissing Gansey back was just proof of that.]

[When she kisses him back, everything feels so right that it takes him a few seconds to remember himself, focusing on her soft lips, and just how hard she's gripping him close.

He breaks the kiss, eyes widening as he steps back, fully realizing the situation. A hand presses to his lips.]

Betty, I'm sorry, I--[didn't meant to take advantage of the situation, don't want to ruin things, don't want to make things worse for you--]

[ for a moment, she feels normal again. for that moment, she's just a pretty girl being kissed by a pretty boy and the world isn't fucked, what they're doing isn't fucked. but then he steps back and starts apologizing and she's just so tired of... well, everything.

He's a good guy. A really good guy. And what she should do is take a step back herself and let him apologize and do the same to him. She should. She should. She should. ]

Don't, [ The word falls out of her mouth without her even realizing it, the word is a command. She moves to close the distance between them and she kisses him this time, tilting herself up towards his lips and kissing him.

Now she's not blameless. Now Gansey won't have to feel bad. And now Jughead won't be allowed to wallow in his guilt.]

[He watches her close the distance and does nothing to stop it. And who can blame him if he's enjoying it? He hesitates, then pulls her closer, sliding his lips against hers more active this time knowing that she has the same thing on her mind. He will feel guilty a bit later.

Though out in the open like this, there are people starting to stare. Especially since Gansey's Mark is so easy to see.

He pulls back mere centimeters to breathe between them:]

Would you like to come over to my place? It's not far from here.

[ She might feel guilty later too. If only because this was the kind of reckless behavior she didn't normally engage in... except when she was pursuing serial killers or someone sinister. It feels better than the times she sat in front of the web cam and yet, later, it might feel worse.

And when he asks her to come back to his place, she wonders if she should. There's a voice in her mind that tells her that Jughead isn't coming back, that tells her he doesn't want anything to do with her anymore, that she'd ruined things by signing that contract.

It's that voice that encourages her further, it's that same voice that pushed her out of her comfort zone in the past. It makes her think that maybe this is what needs to happen to make things even between her and Jughead. Maybe somehow it will alleviate his guilt and bring him back to her...

She nods at Gansey's question, hoping that she isn't using him but not entirely sure that she's not.] Take me there.

[With another beat of hesitation, not wanting to let Betty go, he does, but takes her by the hand to lead her to his apartment. He's focusing on his heart pounding, how soft her hand is in his. When they make it back up to his apartment, he shuts the door behind her.

It's spartan, as a lot of Submissive apartments are that are obtained by their Dominant, but it gets the job done. There's a few mint plants scattered about and a pile of books next to the bed, but that's about it.

Before she can look around too much, Gansey pulls her in close again for a more heated kiss, hands resting on her hips.

is this what he's become? A homewrecker? Do situations like that even apply to a bizarre place like this?]

[ There are moments where she almost stops them, where she wants to turn back and apologize to Gansey for this and then find Jughead to tell him. But then she remembers how easy it had been for Jughead to do the same, to go with someone else, to be with someone else and not say a word to her. Can it be that easy? Can you be with someone and have it mean nothing more than friendship or a short moment of intimacy?

The darker side of her says yes. And the investigator in her seeks to confirm that. She won't lie to Jughead about this, she won't keep it from him. Not to hurt him (because as hurt as she still is, she never wants to hurt him) but to be honest like he wasn't with her. And maybe it will make him feel better? Maybe it'll make her feel better? Maybe he'll just come home. Or maybe he'll give up on her forever.

It's probably all selfish but she doesn't stop Gansey, she lets him guide her to his place, she lets him pull her closer and kiss her. He isn't a homewrecker, she'd tell him that. Her home is already a mess. And she kisses him back, arching up into him, her fingers finding his jacket in an attempt to push it off his shoulders.]

[He helps her out by shrugging out of his jacket, tossing it aside to who-cares-where for the moment. They break contact for fractions of a second just as he struggles to take it off. Then he's back doing the same for her, helping her take her jacket off.

Finally reaching a point where he needs to take a breath, Gansey breaks the kiss, both hands cupping her cheeks and looks at her.]

Are you okay? [he asks, breathlessly.]

[ He slows it down, he halts their hasty race towards doing something more intimate and she blinks up at him as he holds her face.] Yes, [ she murmurs, her true colors filtering in for a moment. She flushes as she looks up at him.] Will we still be friends? [ If this happens, if they do this.]

Of course, [he reassures, thumbs running over her cheekbones.] Or at least, I would like that. [In fact, seeing her more like the Betty he's come to know eases him, makes him more certain that she wants this.

And so he leans back in, softly pressing their lips together for something more affectionate, less hurried, as his hands move down to her hips, slowly guiding her further into the apartment.]

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