Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/13059981.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
  Category:
      F/M
  Fandom:
      Riverdale_(TV_2017)
  Relationship:
      Cheryl_Blossom/Sweet_Pea, Cheryl_Blossom_&_Josie_McCoy, Cheryl_Blossom_&
      Fangs_Fogarty
  Character:
      Sweet_Pea_(Riverdale), Cheryl_Blossom, Josie_McCoy, Toni_Topaz, Fangs
      Fogarty, Penelope_Blossom, Rose_Blossom
  Additional Tags:
      Alternate_Universe_-_Canon_Divergence, Friends_to_Lovers, Grief/Mourning,
      Suicidal_Thoughts, Suicide_Attempt, Implied/Referenced_Character_Death,
      Post-Traumatic_Stress_Disorder_-_PTSD, bc_Cheryl_has_PTSD_fight_me, Canon
      Rewrite, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Eventual_Smut, Falling_In_Love, Past_Child
      Abuse, Teen_Romance, Friendship, Families_of_Choice, Cheryl_Blossom_Needs
      a_Hug, Sweet_Pea_Deserves_Screentime, latinx!Fangs, waysian!Sweets, bc
      need_more_POC_obviously, Interracial_Relationship, kids_falling_hard_and
      falling_fast_for_each_other, Getting_Together, Male-Female_Friendship,
      Cheryl_gets_the_help_that_she_needs, Getting_to_Know_Each_Other, Other
      Additional_Tags_to_Be_Added, an_obnoxious_amount_of_pop_culture
      references, Opposites_Attract
  Stats:
      Published: 2017-12-24 Chapters: 1/? Words: 8446
****** Plato was a Dipshit ******
by Asian_Aaron_Samuels
Summary
     It dawned upon Cheryl just how awful loneliness was, even as self
     inflicted as her own was.
     Then she heard his voice, a low echo in the chambers of her mind, a
     low rumble that progressively grew in intensity until she could hear
     him clear as day.
     'I'd just find something or someone to push me to the next day.'
     She smiled, Sweet Pea wasn't so bad at giving advice after all.
     (That AU where Cheryl doesn't text Veronica, our favourite Southside
     Serpents find her instead, Fangs's voice sounds a lot like Jason
     Blossom's, Sweet Pea calls Cheryl like four different terms of
     endearment in one chapter, Josie and Toni hit it off swimmingly, and
     Penelope is a bitter shrew.)
Cheryl liked Josie, just as she liked Veronica. It’s why she couldn’t tell them
what she intended on doing at Sweetwater River. They were good girls who’d try
to save her and that’s not what she wanted. To be stuck in a psych ward and
accused of crying for help via extreme measures.
No. They wouldn’t understand, they didn't have a twin. Hell, they didn't have
any siblings to begin with. Josie and Veronica knew what it meant to have a
father fail you, but even Myles McCoy and Hiram Lodge could sleep soundly
knowing they didn't kill their nonexistent sons.
And that's what it boiled down to in the end, the untimely death of Jason
Blossom. That heart stopping truth that Cheryl's brother never made it past
Greendale to start a life with Polly Cooper. Those promises of cryptic post
cards from one horse towns and countries they dreamed of visiting were as dead
as the boy who came up with them.
Cheryl's car inched closer to her destination, she could see the thin wooden
planks that made up the fence Jason had parked at months ago. The young redhead
turned off her car and slipped the keys into an envelope labeled "Pollykins"
along wit the registration for the 1961 Chevrolet Impala, then tucked it away
in the glove compartment. She smiled to herself, Jason would be happy knowing
his pride and joy would be in the hands of the mother of his children.
With the elegance of a dancer, Cheryl slid out of the car and just stared at
the place where everything went wrong. A giggle rose up from her throat at the
obvious symbolism of it all. Hey, no one could ever say she didn't live and
breathe dramatics.
The teen reached over to the passenger's seat to retrieve the hammer she picked
up that morning. It wasn't quite fit for her task, but with her patented Can Do
attitude she could still break the ice.
Carefully, Cheryl stepped out onto the just stable enough surface of
Sweetwater. By the time she reached halfway across the frozen river, her nude
pantyhose was soaked around her feet as the ice and snow melted where she
stepped. She stopped when the stinging numbed her feet. Not for the first time
the girl wondered how much pain her brother dealt with before he died. She felt
selfish for comparing the pain brought upon by leaving her shoes in the car
with the brutality Jason faced in his final moments.
She pushed the thought from her head--wasn't the whole point of committing
suicide to be at peace mentally and emotionally? Cheryl knelt down and
proceeded to strike at the ice with her hammer.
After ten minutes of hacking away at the surface, Cheryl had made a sizable
hole even with her muscles groaning in protest.
The pale redhead had just enlarged the hole when she heard the heavy bass of
some classic rock song boom in the air like thunder. She paused to listen if
the source would drift away, but it didn't. The music continued to get louder
and louder until the dread growing in her belly forced her to get back to work.
Cheryl couldn't afford to be stopped. If she hurried, the strangers would
arrive to nothing but her car. Maybe they were upstanding citizens and would
call 911 to report an abandoned car. That would help speed up the process of
leaving Copper in Polly's care. But the likelihood that it was a pair of horny
teens looking to use the October chill to snuggle for warmth, among other
activities teenagers did when they had a car and no adults around, was greater.
At least they'd leave the Impala alone.
The closer the source of the music got, the more erratic Cheryl's strikes
became to the point that her right hand roughly scraped the ice and made her
bleed. The throbbing sensation in her hand doubled when her fist tightened to
keep hold of the hammer, making the teen wince.
From behind, the distinct sound of people whooping and slamming doors alerted
Cheryl that her time was up.
It was now or never. 
She placed the tool off to the side, stood up, and counted back from three.
'Three.'
"Hey!" someone shouted from behind her, "What're you doing, hot stuff?!"
'Two.'
"Wanna party with us?!" 
'One.'
"You okay over there?!"
"No," Cheryl whispered before she stepped into the hole.
The water was colder than the last time she'd jumped in. Obviously. When she
did it after seeing her brother off, she felt good. She'd helped her brother in
starting his new life. Cheryl even dared to swim like the Blossom Twins faked
their deaths all the time.
Every nerve in Cheryl's body was singing in pain, she couldn't even twist
around to face the current without her joints protesting. If she channeled what
was left of her energy into blocking out the freezing temperature and tilted
her body just so, she could imagine she was flying. The weightless effect and
the cold made the perfect euphoric cocktail.
Perhaps that's why she saw him. Jason. Dressed in the same clothes they wore on
the Fourth of July. Seeing her twin made a smile form on her face. Of course
Jason would greet her into the afterlife. He had practically been her guardian
angel when he was alive, why not be the familiar face encouraging her to walk
into the light?
Except for the fact that Jason's handsome face went from pristine porcelain to
a mottled gray. The most terrifying feature was the hole forming on his
forehead where Cheryl knew Clifford Blossom shot his own son. Blood as black as
ink oozed from the wound. The onyx fluid took the shape of tendrils and darted
towards her.
Cheryl opened her mouth in a silent scream, but only succeeded in swallowing
water. The tendrils rushed towards the redhead, pushing past her taffy pink
lips. The liquid filled her lungs until they felt like wet sand bags. With
blurry vision, the teen looked at her "brother". As if on cue, Jason raised his
arms to wrap both hands around the slim column of Cheryl's throat. Try as she
might, screaming did nothing whilst the grip on her neck became tighter and
tighter.
She doesn't hear the pounding from above, only hears that breathless, sad Jason
she uttered the day she lost him.
She doesn't feel hands grab at her shoulders, merely the heaviness of keeping
her eyes open. 
She doesn't see that there's no one in the river with her, just sees the
phantom strangling her with no remorse.
Cheryl closed her eyes.
===============================================================================
Someone put their mouth on hers and blows. Vaguely, the redhead has a mental
image of that viscous blood spewing from her mouth like a geyser. It's
disgusting to say the least. She spits up blood, water, or whatever makes her
lungs feel like exploding. Her body involuntarily convulses. She's suddenly
aware of the chill freezing her down to the marrow of her bones. The goosebumps
along every inch of flesh being tickled by water drops. People were shouting
around her, one person in particular sounded like they were on the brink of
hysteria.
Then there were hands cupping her face, they were so hot against her cheeks she
worried her face would melt right off. A pathetic, wet gurgle bubbled past her
lips. Maybe she was telling them to go away, stop, put her back. 
'I don't want to be here.' Cheryl thought, eyes squeezed tight, 'Just let me
go.'
Cheryl hasn't been cradled since she was a small child. When her and Jason
could climb on their father and pretend Clifford was a dragon or daunting
mountain. Back when she was all thin limbs and fell asleep on the floor of her
father's study because she wanted him to tuck her into bed as promised.
Nevertheless, she knew what it felt like to be carried away in someone's arms.
The way her legs dangled and bounced in a unpredictable rhythm whilst her head
stayed in place against a solid chest. 
Once more, her world narrowed down to one single point. 
Ga-gong. Ga-gong. Ga-gong. Ga-gong.
The strong heartbeat lulled her back into an unconscious state.
===============================================================================
Cheryl didn't like whoever was driving, they deserved to have their license
revoked. More than once she felt the car jerk violently in what she could only
assume was the driver making sharp turns. Just as before, there were people
yelling at each other, voices she couldn't begin to match faces or names to.
"How do you turn on your heater?" A girl, definitely, low and soft like a cat's
purr.
"You gotta-fuck!" A warm, rumbly voice answered. Just a bit deeper than Jason's
had been. "You gotta turn the radio back on to turn it on."
"Tell your dad his car is a piece of shit," someone said. Someone far too
closer to Cheryl for them to just be next to each other.
For the first time since her "swim" in Sweetwater, Cheryl opened her eyes.
Everything was unfocused and what she believed to be the sky was too fucking
bright. The teen reached up to rub at her eyes, but realized she couldn't
because something warm and hard like iron was keeping her immobile.
"Hey," that voice had her craning her neck up, "Look at me."
Cheryl didn't know who to expect. Sheriff Keller, Jason, her father, Whitney
Houston. None of those people greeted her when her vision cleared. No, it was a
boy, teenager technically, with stylish hair and obsidian eyes. It might've be
the death experience talking, but Cheryl thought the stranger was beautiful.
He kept talking because she never responded, trying in vain to process how she
went from being choked by her dead twin to being restrained by a young Clark
Kent. A shirtless Clark Kent.
"Where are.. your shi-rt?" she croaked.
His eyebrows practically rose to his hairline at the question. He looked down
at his naked chest, then at Cheryl.
"You're wearing it," he answered slowly.
Cheryl became acutely aware that she wasn't in her dress. A quick glance down
told her that the valley between her breasts down to her stomach was exposed.
Her legs were wrapped up in a ratty flannel with the sleeves tied around them
to secure it. The only things protecting her modesty was her panties and the
denim best presumably owned by the boy cradling her to his chest. Cheryl's mind
supplied images of a shitty Nicholas Sparks movie where Zac Efron kept the
female lead from dying of hypothermia by taking their wet clothes off and
warming her up with his own heat. She hoped he saw that movie too, if just to
explain her lack of clothing.
"Cheryl," the redhead stated.
"Call me Sweet Pea," he said in a completely casual tone.
The person riding shotgun turned in their seat to look back at her. They locked
eyes, the former offered a soft, almost apologetic smile.
"We didn't think you'd want us to take you to Riverdale General-"
Cheryl didn't give her a chance to finish her sentence before she shook her
head quickly and tried to sit up.
"No-no, I can't go to the hospital!"
"T," Sweet Pea scowled.
"Okay, that's fine. We won't." She bit her lip, "We thought about going to our
friend Fangs's house. Is that okay, Cheryl?"
The older teen nodded, getting another smile from "T" and a hand on her raised
knee.
"I'm Toni by the way."
Cheryl opened her mouth to introduce herself when a full bodied shiver made her
nearly bite her tongue. Sweet Pea pulled her closer while gingerly closing his
vest around her chest.
Toni went back to properly sitting in her seat, but faced the driver.
"How long does it take for this metal death trap to heat up, Fogarty?"
"How long of a drive is it from Sweet's house to the river?"
"Like twenty minutes."
"Then twenty minutes."
The ginger could see the blatant frown form on the black teen's face. She
looked back at Cheryl and mouthed an apology. 
Twenty minutes of music Cheryl typically raised her nose at, last second turns
that either had her and Sweet Pea firmly pressed against the left side of the
car or careening towards the opposite direction. Needless to say, the
cheerleader had a few choice words for Fangs--he'd taken the time to make her
acquaintance at the last red light--they were mostly inflammatory.
Fangs pulled up to a duplex with chipped periwinkle paint. From Cheryl's
vantage point she could see a motorcycle parked underneath a tacky awning and a
Rottweiler chained to an adjacent post. The animal barked at them as Fangs
parked the car.
"Don't worry about him, he's harmless," he commented after turning the car off.
The heater shut off after barely three minutes of use.
Sweet Pea resituated Cheryl so she was sitting beside him before he got out of
the car. The two teens followed suit, Fangs walked towards the door closer to
the dog whilst Toni came around to the door Sweet Pea left open. She tilted her
head at the rich girl, a thoughtful look crossed her face.
"Okay, Cheryl I think we should tie the flannel around your waist like a cover-
up, and then Sweets can carry you inside." Toni quirked a brow, "Cool?"
Cheryl nodded, prompting the male present to turn his back while Toni moved
halfway into the backseat to untie the flannel and rewrap it around the
redhead's waist. The way she tied it allowed for most of Cheryl's thighs to be
covered save for where the sleeves were tied at her left hip. After that was
all said and done, the pink haired teen moved back, allowing Sweet Pea to poke
his head into the car.
"I'm gonna pick you up," he said.
"I know."
Sweet Pea nodded, "Just don't wanna freak you out."
Cheryl scooted closer to the door until she was close enough for the brunet to
pick her up bridal style. Logically, she knew they had spent over twenty
minutes pressed together for the sake of preserving body heat.. but bow she was
conscious of the fact that they were both shirtless and one of the three
strangers she'd just met had undressed her.
He realized she was staring at him and met her gaze. Cheryl felt her cheeks
heat up against her will.
"You guys do this often? Save sad little girls from drowning?"
Sweet Pea started to smirk, "Only when we skip school."
The inside of Fangs's house was homey. A little less than halfway through their
drive is when it dawned upon Cheryl that she had been rescued by residents of
the south side of Riverdale. For all of her classist bullshit, the redhead had
nothing against Southsiders. Well, unless you counted FP Jones, but she didn't
want to think about him.
Sweet Pea set Cheryl down on the faux leather couch across from a relatively
old flat screen. Toni was in the kitchen on the left side of the house, Fangs
was nowhere to be seen, and Sweet Pea went back outside without saying
anything.
With a shaky sigh, the sole Northsider curled her legs underneath her and did
her best to keep her breasts from spilling out of the vest. 
As if he'd been reading her mind, her gracious host appeared from the mouth of
the hallway next to the TV carrying a bundle of clothes.
Fangs cleared his throat, "Didn't wanna risk pissing off my sister, so I
grabbed my clothes." Cheryl neatly trembled at how eerily familiar his voice
was. "But I guess warm clothes is better than Sweet's mix and match shit."
The ginger teen nodded, "You have my gratitude, Fangs."
He came closer to her, just enough for him to be able to extend his arm for her
to grab. Cheryl accepted the offered limb with what little grace she could
muster up, all but falling onto the tan teen.
"Easy, I got you."
His words dug like fingernails into barely healed wounds. Fangs wrapped an arm
around her waist to support her while he patiently led her back the way he
came. They passed a handful of framed pictures, one displayed what the Blossom
could only assume was a young Fangs. At the end of the hall were three doors,
the one that was open had the typical, messy chaos of any average boy's room.
With care, the Latino teen directed her to the edge of his bed.
"Here," he handed her the clothes he'd gathered. "I can call Toni if you need
help." Fangs jabbed a thumb in the direction of the kitchen.
Cheryl shook her head, "I believe I can manage from here."
The dark haired male nodded, then turned to grab a shirt from a half closed
dresser drawer. When he turned his back to her, the shorter teen got a chance
to see the patch emblazoned on his leather jacket.
Southside Serpents.
A sudden wave of panic hit Cheryl as images of FP Jones, her father, and Jason
all flashed in her mind like a bad horror movie. She squeezed her eyes shut
until stars burst into her vision like fireworks, destroying the ghosts of a
painful month.
And then she felt her left cheek being cupped by a warm hand. The action caught
her off guard, her eyes opened to stare right into Fangs's brown ones. His eyes
darted across her face while his free hand--the shirt he'd retrieved not in
sight--smoothed down her hair in long strokes. The act was too intimate, too
comforting, too familiar that Cheryl burst into tears and buried her face into
Fangs's neck. The second her nose started to run she expected the other teen to
pull away with a grimace and curse. Instead, he continued to pet her head and
rub circles on her back in a nonsensical pattern. She felt the urge to
reciprocate the comforting gesture, thus she ended up ran her hands down his
neck, and ignored the way her fingers caught on the patch.
They stayed like that until Cheryl's cries quieted down. She took a moment to
compose herself until her breathing returned to normal and the tears ceased.
"Better?" he asked.
She nodded before she pulled away with a sniffle. The redhead grimaced as she
used the heel of her hand to wipe away the shameful evidence of her grief from
Fangs's neck. In turn, he gave her a reassuring smile that made her realize
just how handsome he was.
'The handsomest,' a tiny voice mocked.
"I think I should finally get changed," Cheryl stated, intent on ignoring that
voice.
"Yeah," the Latino nodded, "I'll be outside."
Once Fangs closed the door, the Northsider unfurled the wad of clothes. The
latter gave her a pair of charcoal sweats, a white v neck, plain white socks,
and a simple red hoodie. She dressed as quickly as she could with random
tremors that shook her like a leaf caught in the wind.
Nevertheless, Cheryl accomplished the simple task, she even folded Sweet Pea's
clothes neatly beside her. From the corner of her eye, she spotted a full
length mirror propped up beside the dresser. The teen willed herself to find
the energy to venture over and check out her hair situation, having forgone her
usual makeup for a clean face. She concentrated on the desire to look
presentable to slowly rise and gingerly walk over to the mirror. When Cheryl
reached the mirror half decorated with bumper stickers and decals, she prepared
for the worst.
"Oh, you wet rat," the ginger exclaimed, both hands went up to the damp,
tangled mess her hair had become.
Upon realizing she had been seen by three people her age in this particularly
horrid state she groaned.
"I went from Jessica Hamby to Raggedy Ann," she frowned petulantly, "I'm a wet
Troll doll…"
With a dramatic sigh, Cheryl did her best to comb her slightly shaky fingers
through her long hair. Smoothing down the top of her head, the rich girl
conjured up a convincing enough smile to coax a faux happiness out of her.
The walk back to the living room felt longer without Fangs's support. She
spotted him on the couch holding his dog by its collar. He was talking to Sweet
Pea, their voices low and conspiratory. The Rottweiler barked at her, causing
the two Serpents to look in her direction. Self conscious, Cheryl reached for
one of her fiery locks to curl around her fingers.
She smiled, "Did I miss anything, gang?" 
Toni emerged from the kitchen with two steaming mugs The black Southsider
grinned at her.
"Right on time for some hot chocolate," the shorter girl offered the mug in her
left hand. Cheryl accepted it.
"Thank you." Hot chocolate never sounded more delicious in her life.
Fangs patted the empty space beside him, "Wanna sit?"
The Blossom heir nodded, she made her way back to the couch, eyes trained on a
random spot on the off white wall. Toni took a seat on the floor with her back
resting on Sweet Pea's legs and her own bracketing the Fogarty family's dog.
They were all looking at Cheryl, even the dog. Nerves unsettled, she took a sip
of her hot chocolate. It was delicious, too good to have come from a packet,
with a hint of cinnamon and coffee that had her going for another ill advised
gulp to taste more of the hot liquid. Vaguely, she wondered how long she spent
crying on Fangs.
"So Cheryl," Toni began, "Are your parents looking for you?"
"No," the aforementioned teen replied easily. Her mother most likely assumed
she was with the Vixens.
Sweet Pea, fully clothed thanks to his friend, spoke next. "Me and Fogarty were
talkin', and we both think you're familiar."
The redhead responded by pressing her pink lips together pointedly. Of course
they knew who she was, The Register was sold on this side of the tracks too.
She couldn't bear seeing their pity filled expressions.
Poor Cheryl Blossom, her beloved twin murdered by their drug dealing father who
killed himself before he could be brought to justice.
"What's your dog's name?" Cheryl changed the subject, tone masking her rising
distress.
Fangs's lips turned down slightly, but he indulged her nonetheless.
"This is Fabio," the brunet replied, "Moms named him 'cause I got to pick the
breed. Don't let his big brown eyes fool you, he's a man-eater."
Toni rolled her eyes, "Yeah, he's a real hood dog."
"You know it," Fangs winked. 
Cheryl leaned over to rub her free hand over the Rottweiler's head. Fabio
leaned into the touch with fervor, tongue out with delight.
"Well hello, handsome."
The Northside teen's obvious attempt at a conversation change worked. Instead
of talking about the events that led up to when the found her at the river,
they complained about school assignments and the unusually frosty fall. Cheryl
was a sucker for her favourite author Sarah Dessen. Fangs used to live in
Chicago, and before that LA, when his parents decided to move to Riverdale.
Sweet Pea was half Chinese and spoke Cantonese as fluidly as he did English.
Toni had her sexual awakening when she watched Commando in the sixth grade and
was enchanted by Rae Dawn Chong's smile whilst simultaneously drooling over
good ol' Arnold Schwarzenegger's bulging muscles.
The ginger had to lean into Fang's side, doubled over with laughter at Toni's
tale of trials and tribulations at summer camp in middle school.  
"I can't with you right now," she cried out, eyes watery with mirth.
Sweet Pea snickered, "That shit gets funnier every time you tell it."
"Blow me," the black teen punched his leg.
"Whip it out."
"Hey," Fangs barked, "Everyone keeps their dicks in their pants."
"That reminds me of when my brother and I decided to try our hands at puppetry.
Neither of us were particularly creative, so we ended up reenacting the plots
of old movies with our marionette dolls." Cheryl fiddled with the hem of her
hoodie.
"That's adorable," the female Serpent commented.
The taller girl nodded. She'd successfully avoided bringing up Jason, even when
Fangs got a text from his younger sister that she was staying after school at
Southside High. Memories and thoughts of Jason were equal parts beautiful and
tragic.
Fabio snuffled at her hand, then licked at it until she resumed petting him.
"Cheryl-" the doorbell rang, effectively cutting off Toni.
The sound had a Pavlovian effect on the red haired teen, in seconds a picture
perfect smile plastered on her pale face and her hands were folded neatly in
her lap. 
"You have company, Fangs. It would be rude to leave them waiting."
Wordlessly, Fangs stood up to make his way to the door. Sweet Pea and Toni
craned their heads to see the newcomer.
"Oh Cheryl!" a familiar voice exclaimed.
Said girl looked over to see her best friend rushing to her, arms out to pull
her into her chest. Josie hugged her tight, warm cheek nuzzling her own. When
she moved back her eyes were glassy with unshed tears.
"Oh my God, Cheryl! I was totally freaking out all the way here!"
"W-how-how did you know I was here?"
Josie jerked her thumb at the Southsiders.
"Some guy called me from your phone."
Cheryl raised her brow at them, silently questioning the hows, whys, and whens.
"When we were getting you into Fangs's car, I went to yours and found your
phone. I went into your call log, and figured the one with the most calls to
and from would be someone close to you. Also, you should put a passcode on your
phone." Toni explained prior to taking a sip of her hot chocolate. "Had Sweets
go out and call Josie."
"Thank you, by the way," the leader of the Pussycats said sincerely, earning a
wink from the black Serpent.
"What did they tell you?" Cheryl questioned.
Josie let her go to take the free seat beside her, mindful of Fabio.
"Homedude said they saw you walking on the ice at Sweetwater, you saw they were
Serpents like Jughead's dad, freaked out, tried to run, and you stepped on thin
ice, it broke and then you fell in." The Pussycat didn't take a breath during
her explanation, thus Josie gasping for air like she ran a marathon.
The ginger looked above her friend's head at the teens who collectively saved
herand went out of their way to lie for her. Fangs was leaning against the door
with his arms crossed, Toni and Sweet Pea were in the same position as when
they first sat down. Their expressions were all the same: understanding.
Whatever it was about these three Serpents they didn’t treat her like the
privileged rich Northside teen that she was.
Maybe they looked at her and didn't see Jason Blossom's bitchy sister or the
Blossom that should've died in a dank basement.
Maybe they just saw Cheryl, even if she wasn't quite sure who that was.
"Cheryl," Josie touched her cheek, getting her attention.
"Hmm? I'm sorry, I was spacing out." She smiled sweetly at the shorter female,
"Must be the impromptu swim I took." 
The black teen frowned. Sweet Pea cleared his throat from behind her.
"Not that this isn't all cool, but I think Cheryl should go home and sleep." He
hissed in pain a second later. "T, what the-shit, Topaz! Fuck off!"
A quick glance down let the two Northsiders see Toni digging her nails into
Sweet Pea's leg through a hole in his jeans. The latter glared at the pink
haired girl.
"He's right, sleep would do you good," Josie agreed.
"Of course I am."
"Even a broken clock is right twice a day," Toni deadpanned.
"What do you say, Cheryl?" We'll go back to Thornhill. I can stay the night,
but my mom's going to want me back home early. Is that okay?"
"Perfect," Cheryl smiled.
It really was. What could possibly be a better evening than a sleepover with
her best friend? If Josie spent the night, Penelope would keep her distance.
Well, more so than usual.
Josie suggested waiting for the Blossom heir to finish her hot chocolate,
something Cheryl was more than happy to do. It allowed the Serpents to properly
introduce themselves to Josie, and give her a more in depth depiction of how
they met Cheryl. Frankly, she hadn't expected the two black girls to hit it off
so quickly, but there they were huddled together discussing the cinematography
of music videos. Their humble host left shortly after meeting Josie to walk
Fabio and smoke.
That left Cheryl and Sweet Pea sitting closer than they had been previously.
"What's it like?"
Sweet Pea's brows furrowed in confusion, "Being this good looking? It's a
curse." He grinned at the shorter teen when she rolled her eyes. "But you
understand what that's like. Right, brown eyes?"
The ginger snorted, "How observant of you. I meant what's it like being a
Serpent?" 
"Why do you wanna know?" His tone was skeptical and Cheryl tried to not be
hurt.
"I've never been in a gang. I'm a cheerleader, but those bitches would just as
quickly throw me to the wolves."
"Brutal."
Cheryl bit her tongue so she wouldn't tell him about Ginger and Tina.
"It's like a club. You can't just wake up and decide you want to be a Serpent.
We have rules and initiations. It's ride or die."
"Sounds like a frat, but with more leather," the red haired female commented.
He laughed, "We don't paddle each other or clean up the quarry. Southside
Serpents exist to exist I guess. We're our own little community."
"That sounds nice."
Cheryl raised her mug to finish the last mouthful of chocolatey goodness. Sweet
Pea looked at the empty cup.
"Guess it's time to go."
She'd forgotten all about her inevitable departure, too wrapped up in chatting
with the tall Southsider and looking over at the other two girls. Cheryl almost
felt… disappointed.
"Don't be so choked up," the shorter teen joked.
"I'll try to move on," he quipped.
Sweet Pea helped her onto her feet before stating he'd carry her out to Josie's
car, which Cheryl had no complaints about. Toni retrieved a plastic bag with
the ginger's wet clothes and handed it to her after giving her a hug. She also
gave her everyone's phone numbers after getting her phone from the Asian
Serpent.
"You guys aren't so bad for upstanding youths on the Northside," the pink
haired female teased.
"Right back at cha," Josie replied. She turned to Sweet Pea with a half formed
smirk curling her strawberry coloured lips. "As for you, thank you for saving
my girl."
The aforementioned teen shrugged, "Just doing my due diligence as an upstanding
youth on the Southside."
Cheryl giggled while her companion rolled her eyes. The sole male of the group
picked the redhead up, the heat from his hands seeped through her clothes and
warmed her up in a way the hot chocolate had not. Josie and Toni walked ahead
of them to the bright yellow jeep haphazardly parked just an inch away from the
front door. Ever the gentlemen, Sweet Pea placed Cheryl in the front seat and
went as far as putting her seatbelt on before he closed the door.
Josie started her car and got in, but still continued to talk to the female
gang member through her window. Cheryl followed her example and did the same
with Sweet Pea. He wordlessly accepted the invitation, leaning his arms on the
opened window.
"Topaz gave you my number, right?" 
"Yep."
The Chinese teen nodded, "Good. Mind calling me later?"
"Why?"
"Just so I know you got home safe," he responded in a matter of fact tone.
With her lips pursed, the ginger nodded after a beat.
"What're you going to do now?"
"Probably go to the bar, get a drink, shoot the shit, go home, eat, sleep."
"Sounds like a plan."
The chatter on the driver's side of the car died down, it was time to go.
"I guess this is goodbye," Cheryl said.
Sweet Pea shrugged, "Could always come back."
"I might just have to take you up on that offer." She chewed on her lip to
smother a smile. "Bye."
The tall male winked before moving back, prompting Josie to reverse. As she
moved back out onto the main road, her companion waved at the Serpents. Cheryl
didn't turn away until the two people were nothing but black specs.
Josie turned on the radio, some pop song only Valerie in her infinite lyrical
knowledge would know the name of came on. Neither of them spoke, the Blossom
chalked it up to her dear friend not believing Sweet Pea's lie or not wanting
to ambush her with questions. Nevertheless, the silence between them was
organic and comfortable.
Gazing at the foreign terrain, Cheryl recognized a familiar face standing at a
stop sign holding onto a leash. Suddenly excited, she called out to Fangs who
didn't hide his surprise as he gave her a casual two finger salute. When Josie
drove away and her red haired passenger returned to staring ahead, the former
laughed.
"Something funny, Jojo?"
"Besides you waving like a hardcore Belieber at a JB concert? Nothing."
"It was Fangs, I didn't get to say goodbye," the ginger replied defensively.
"Don't worry, girl. I'm not having a heart attack because he's from the
Southside. We just spent like sixteen minutes talking to Serpents about how
gross Melanie Martinez is and the difference between an egg roll and a spring
roll."
"I know, I just-I know it looks weird from the outside." Cheryl blew out the
remaining air in her lungs then took in a slow breath. "When I came out of the
water it was like I came to another world."
Josie hummed thoughtfully, "You're Will Byers in the Upside Down."
"No, that's the thing. After JJ died for real, everything was dark and I was
miserable. And then I woke up in a car full of strangers who treated me better
than any of my peers--present company excluded--and I feel so good, and Fangs…"
"And Fangs," the black teen parroted with a raised brow.
"You didn't really meet him so you don't know, but he sounds just like Jason."
"Wow."
"My thoughts exactly."
"They seem pretty chill, we should hang out with them sometime."
"Them or Toni?" Cheryl teased. "Don't think I didn't catch the way you two were
looking at each other."
"Girl, shut up."
The redhead laughed at the idea of the mayor's only daughter dating a Serpent.
===============================================================================
When they reached Thornhill, Cheryl had to skitter to the front of the door
with the snow seeping through her socks. She cursed upon realizing her keys
were still in her car. The spare key hidden under a rock beneath the nearby
rose bush finally proved to be useful at least.
The temperature inside of Thornhill was barely any different from outside, the
downside of living in such a large house. The duo made their way to Cheryl's
bedroom before Penelope could rear her head around the corner.
Upon locking the door, Josie unceremoniously plopped onto her friend's bed and
stretched like the feline she named her band after. The taller of the two
mimicked her pose and stretched aching bones. Eventually, they made their way
under the heavy comforter. Josie hummed softly and that was the last thing
Cheryl heard before succumbing to sleep.
She woke up a few hours later to a pink sticky note explaining her sleepover
companion left to get an overnight bag and take out. Cheryl put the note down
and returned to her previous position, curled up in the fetal position with her
blanket pulled up to her nose. Left with nothing but her thought, she ran
through the day's events.
Her suicide attempt was a bust. Met strangers who also saved her life. One of
them sounded like a huskier version of her late brother. Her newfound bisexual
friend might have the hots for her lesbian friend. Said friend didn't know that
she was teetering on the line between I-Want-To-Die and Things-Will-Get-Better-
Right? And Sweet Pea told her to call him when she got home.
Sweet Pea told her to call him when she got home.
The redhead scrambled to get her phone from the accent table across the room.
She searched through her contacts until she found the desired name and tapped
on it. The ringback stretched on for what felt like an eternity until she heard
his voice.
"Cheryl?"  
"You assumed correctly," the redhead smiled. "Just wanted to call and tell you
I made it home and enjoyed my nap."
"That's good." There was clacking sound from his end.
"Josie left while I was sleeping to go pick up dinner, so I'm just twiddling my
thumbs until she gets back."
"That's lame, go turn on your TV and watch something funny."
"Any suggestions? I have Netflix."
Sweet Pea yelled at someone. "How are you with horror movies?"
"I thought you just said I should watch a comedy?"
"What I have in mind is both."
"I suppose a good scare never hurt me before."
"Watch Tucker and Dale Versus Evil, it's fucking hilarious."
"This better not be a let down like Paper Towns," she remarked while grabbing
her remote and heading back to her bed.
While waiting for Netflix to load up, the rich teen asked what her Southside
friend was up to.
"'Bout to win a hundred bucks from Tall Boy," Sweet Pea replied cockily. 
Someone yelled that he was dreaming and to shut up because he was trying to
impress a pretty girl.
"Sounds like you have your work cut out for you."
"Tall Boy hasn't beaten me at pool yet," he announced, "Unless he and Byrdie
team up against me like the assholes they are."
There was a muffled woman's voice. Followed by that same voice Cheryl assumed
was Tall Boy talking which then evolved into a shouting match. Sweet Pea
shouted obscenities the redhead didn't even know were insults.
"Hold on, Cheryl. Byrdie's whipping out her dick to have a pissing contest with
Tall Boy."
"Sounds intense," she commented.
Cheryl searched for the horror-comedy hybrid and proceeded to watch it with her
phone pressed to her ear. She tried to listen to what was going on with Sweet
Pea, but the movie drew her in.
"You still there, Red?" he asked right when Tyler Labine's adorkable character
scared the college students.
"Yeah, still playing?"
"Nah, I learned years ago not to get in the way of Byrdie and billiards."
Cheryl giggled, "Funny. What're you doing then?"
"Drinking a Dos Equis and chilling outside," he answered before very audibly
gulping filtered through Cheryl's phone.
"They don't sell Goldschläger at this dive bar?"
"Well I was going to drink a Tequila Sunrise, but then I realized I'm not a
college co-ed in Cancun during Spring Break," the Chinese teen retorted.
"Excuse you, I happen to love those."
"Noted."
A moment passed where they said nothing and all the female heard was Alan Tudyk
on TV. She hadn't made a game plan for talking to Sweet Pea. There was plenty
to talk about and no obvious way to go about it.
"How are you feeling?"
"Pardon?"
"I wanted to ask if you're okay, but I'm pretty sure I put my foot in my
mouth."
"No, it's okay," she hurriedly stated.
"What about you, then?  
"I-" the Northside teen paused. She was pleasantly surprised Sweet Pea asked,
but didn't quite want to be forthcoming. Being emotionally vulnerable was hard.
"I'm numb a lot? If I'm not incredibly depressed as you've seen, I'm angry. And
it takes so much out of me to cry and be the Alpha Bitch."
"You could try to not be an Alpha Bitch then."
"Then I'd drown for lack of a better term in all my despair and hate. And it's
a lot easier to hate people than myself."
Sweet Pea hummed, "I got you."
She believed it. There was just something oddly soothing about being open with
him. In an eight minute conversation where the second party was gone mediating
a game of pool for most of it, she felt compelled to tell him what was wrong.
His voice was a truth serum to her.
"Being angry and lonely is better than being melancholic and lonely."
"What about Josie?"
Cheryl shook her head, blushing when she remembered he couldn’t see her. He was
throwing her off her game. "Josie's my friend and I adore her more than words
can express. But I can't possibly weigh her down with the truth."
"All right, what about me?"
"You?"
"Yeah, I was the one who pulled you out of the river, I gave you my clothes and
held you in Fogarty's car. If you don't want Josie to be your emotional go-to
person, I'll step up to the plate."
"Sweets-"
"Believe it or not, I'm a good listener, and my shoulders are good for crying
on. Just sayin'."
"That sounds nice," the redhead admitted.
"We can even talk about Jason."
Cheryl mentally cursed Alice and Hal Cooper. That family was a pox on her very
existence.
"You know about Jason." It wasn't a question. It was a cold, hard fact. 
"A murder in Riverdale isn't something I wouldn't hear. The Blossoms are the
talk of the town lately."
"I see."
"Look, I don't want to pussyfoot around you. You need a friend and I can be
your friend. You can talk to me about Jason and I won't say fake shit because I
didn't know him and I'm not going to go, 'I miss him,' and act like I'm hurting
just as much as you."
"What if I don't want to talk about my brother, ever?"
"Fine by me," Sweet Pea replied sincerely, "We can talk about other stuff.
Like.. are you a real redhead?"
She laughed and bit her lip, "Is the Pope Catholic?"
The Chinese Serpent howled with laughter on the other end.
They stopped talking, Cheryl tried to figure out how a character could impale
himself on a tree branch Olaf style.
"Sweets?"
"Yeah?"
"Are you any good at giving advice?"
"I don't know. How good are you at taking advice?"
"Minimal effort on my part to follow through."
"Fuck it, shoot."
The red haired teen swallowed nervously. "If you felt like you had nothing to
live for--no friends to truly mourn you, no parents to question their
influence, trivial interests that meant too much to never do again, not even a
gerbil you'd worry would be sent back to the pet store--what would you do so
you don't Kurt Cobain yourself?"
"Kinda sounds rhetorical. I'd just find something or someone to push me to the
next day." He paused, "I'd also take a sec to realize if just one person would
miss me if I was gone."
"Who would miss you?" the ginger asked curiously.
"For starters, my dad and grandma. There's just people you don't want to hurt,
y'know?"
"Surprisingly, yes."
The door opened and closed so quickly Cheryl thought she was seeing things
until she registered Josie standing there with a bag of takeout and a green
hobo sling bag.
"Josie's back, I'll call you some other time."
"Yeah, I should head back inside before Byrdie breaks another pool stick over
Tall Boy's head. Before you hang up, just think about what I said."
She nodded out of habit, "I will. Bye."
"Bye."
Cheryl hung up and placed her phone on her nightstand.
"Who was that?" Josie asked while kicking off her shoes.
"Archibald Andrews," the cheerleader lied easily, "Seems your presence is
greatly missed at the jubilee."
The black teen waved her hand dismissively before explaining that she and the
other Pussycats agreed to let Archie lead. Cheryl felt guilty about Josie being
in the gothic interior of Thornhill. She nibbled on a fry to keep from crying
over spilled milk.
"I'm looking at it this way, I gave Melody the spot as lead female vocalist."
"It still doesn’t mean that musically inclined Ron Weasley should've gotten the
spotlight. From what you said he picked a Golden Quartet focused song despite
the theme not being 'Badly Dressed Teenagers Think They Rule Riverdale'."
Josie laughed, "Rookie mistake. Besides, I'm right where I want to be." She
grinned in a way that didn't forget to show an ounce of genuine compassion for
the older girl.
"Josephine McCoy, you are one of the good ones," Cheryl said, her saccharine
words pure and heartfelt.
"Shut up," the aforementioned teen blushed, "So what's this weird movie you
have on? Isn't that the Token Black Guy from She's the Man? 
===============================================================================
Cheryl woke up to her shoulder being shook and an incessant chanting of her
name. Bleary eyed, she rolled over to look at Josie, full dressed with her
natural hair in symmetric buns atop her head.
"Morning, I gotta bounce before my mom sends a squad car to pick me up."
"How Princess Di," Cheryl joked.
After taking a minute to stretch her limbs, she rose from her bed and escorted
the other teen to her car. They talked in low voices all the way to Josie's
jeep. The latter promised to text the ginger when she got home. Cheryl waited
until Josie drove away, twirling on her stripper clad feed back to the house.
Penelope was standing in the foyer, face devoid of any emotion.
"Good morning, Mommy."
"Where is Jason's car?" the older Blossom questioned, completely ignoring her
daughter's greeting.
"It’s my car, too." 
"Did you leave it at the McCoy's?"
"No."
Cheryl made to walk past her mother to return to her room, but Penelope's hand
shot out to restrain her.
"You skip school, your car is missing, and you're wearing something that looks
like you found it in the clearance section of K Mart." The shorter woman closed
her eyes and sighed tiredly. "I don't know why you're trying to raise my blood
pressure, but you are!"
Cheryl didn’t bother asking how she knew she hadn't gone to school, it felt
pointless to ask when her mother was already enraged.
"I'm not trying to hurt you, Mommy. Honest."
"If only I could believe you," Penelope murmured, iron grip slowly loosening
until it fell limp at her side.
Taking her chance, Cheryl started for the stairs again. 
"I'm going out, don't wait up for me."
Without further interruption, she ascended the stairs two at a time, and locked
herself in her room. With perfect precision, the Blossom heir made her bed
before hopping into the shower. Hot water and her signature apple scented
shampoo sounded divine. As she scrubbed her body, she thought about what she
had planned for the day.
And the horrible truth was that on a Saturday during her last year of high
school she had no plans. Of course, having plans would require her to have more
friends than Josie "Faster, Pussycats, Kill Kill Kill" and her frenemy
Veronica. A rush of emotions streamed through Cheryl's mind like a river,
remembering Saturday morning cartoons with Jason and competitive sprints around
the grounds of Thornhill for exercise. Weekends spent with Tina and Ginger were
nothing less than activities to pass the time between breakfast and bedtime.
It dawned upon Cheryl just how awful loneliness was, even as self inflicted as
her own was. 
Then she heard his voice, a low echo in the chambers of her mind, a low rumble
that progressively grew in intensity until she could hear him clear as day.
'I'd just find something or someone to push me to the next day.'
She smiled, Sweet Pea wasn't so bad at giving advice after all.
===============================================================================
Getting an Uber to take her to Sweetwater as easy. Finding the perfect song to
listen to while she drove? Difficult. Nana Rose always said the first song she
listened to greatly influenced her entire mood for the day. It was the Blossom
family's greatest indicator on how the elderly woman would be, hearing The Rat
Pack meant Rose would be cheerful and agreeable whereas classical music was a
clear sign to make the Blossom name proud.
For years, Cheryl and Jason had been the same way as well, allowing their
playlists to shape their mood and really just put them in a good state. For a
month straight her Junior year, Cheryl played Freakum Dress while she got
dressed because Melody sang it in the locker room once.
The right song changes everything.
So Cheryl stayed on her quest for the perfect song until she stopped on a
station her parents had been partial to on long drives, The DJs played music
they enjoyed during their youth. And while the youngest Blossom didn't
typically like any song written before Boys II Men debuted, she made exceptions
when it came to humming Up Where We Belong while Penelope sang just above a
whisper.
The song was obviously pop, bouncy and fun, and just barely familiar.
And did you think this fool could never win
Well look at me, I'm coming back again
I got a taste for love in a simple way
And if you need to know while I'm still standing you just fade away 
Her ruby lips pulled back into a content smile, this was the song. Cheryl drove
away from Sweetwater with Elton John playing loudly for all to hear.
Don’t you know I'm still standing better than I ever did
Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid
I'm still standing after all this time
Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind 
I'm still standing, yeah yeah yeah
I'm still standing, yeah yeah yeah
===============================================================================
Cheryl Blossom had many beliefs and opinions. One of them being a home cooked
meal would always beat any restaurant's. If there was one thing Cheryl could do
it was whip up a scrumptious breakfast ranging from a simple omelet to French
crepes with her own whipped cream.
That's how she ended up on the steps of the Fogarty residence, arms laden with
paper bags filled the brim with groceries, and her most dazzling smile.
Fangs rubbed at his eyes with the heel of his hand, "Cheryl?"
"Good morning, Fangsy," she chirped, walking past him into the kitchen.
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