XX

"What? What did you expect? That Jelly and I would be all over you? Welcome back to the real world, sis."

Jughead's words from earlier continued to ring in my ears for the rest of the night.

As Dad, Jelly and I sat in Pops' quaint diner with milkshakes and burgers, all I could think about was Jughead's back as he walked away. As Jelly was helping me unpack my things once we got back to the trailer, all I could remember was the dripping sarcastic tone that erupted from Jughead's mouth the minute he saw me. As I lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, unable to sleep, all I could recall from the previous encounter was Jughead staring at me as if I was some ... stranger.

I gulped. To him, that's who I was. A stranger.

I glanced at my wristwatch, squinting to see the glowing hands of the clock in the stuffy darkness of the room.

1.30.

With a muffled sigh, I rolled over and buried my face in my pillow. Usually I would be dead asleep by now, what, with all the travelling I had been doing ... But that night, my mind was racing at one hundred miles per hour.

I sighed again as I turned over onto my other side, trying to find a comfortable position to rest in. The bed was too small and creaky and the mattress was too old and lumpy ... If only Mum could see me now.

I passed a weary hand over my forehead as I closed my eyes, willing for sleep to come.

1.45.

If I didn't doze off soon, I would have a heck of a day tomorrow. I would literally be dragging myself around like a fat, grumpy bear that was awoken from its hibernation before winter ended.

To top all this off, Jughead hadn't even returned to the trailer after he disappeared at the Whyte Wyrm. I tried to make do with the thought that he'd crashed at someone else's place, mostly because he hadn't wanted to see me, but I was still worried. I hoped that he was okay and that he wasn't feeling too overwhelmed or hurt by my return. I never wanted my arrival to have this effect on him. I just really wanted to see him. I guess I hadn't thought clearly of the consequences though ...

VVRROOMM.

Startled, I bolted upright with a gasp of shock. I placed a hand over my chest as I tried to still my jumpy nerves. Straining my ears, I was able to make out the distant sound of a revving engine from someone's vehicle as it cut through the still night-time air.

I rolled my eyes. It was probably just some annoying gangsters out to have some fun by ruining everyone else's sleep. I was just about to sigh and lay back down again when someone's headlights flashed through the partially closed windows of the trailer and caused shadows to dance against the opposite wall. It was then that I was struck with a sudden thought. What if Jughead was with them?

As I weighed up the odds of this, I could distinctly hear the melodious notes of a girl's high-pitched laugh as it floated through the thin trailer walls.

VVRROOOMM. VVRROOMM.

The loud engine sounds drew closer and closer and then, just like that, the noise was throttled and all was still, until ...

"Hey, Jug, what does your sister look like, hmm? Is she hot?" a rough, masculine voice pierced through the icy chill of the air.

Okay, I'm really sorry, guys, but I'm not missing this ... I don't care if you're talking about me or not. Jughead's with you and I just need to make sure he's okay.

I pushed back the warm covers and my legs reluctantly responded as I dropped them onto the cold ground. I winced as I slowly stood up, the floorboards beneath me creaking under my weight.

"Aw shush it, Fangs, and stop being such a perv!" an annoyed, feminine tone called out laughingly in response.

"A perv? Geez. You watch yourself, Toni, I'm no perv," the boy scoffed in reply. "I'm just curious, that's all."

"Curiosity killed the cat, remember?" Toni snickered.

"Yeah, well, that cat had nine lives ... remember?" Fangs mimicked her voice in a higher-pitch.

"I don't sound like that, oh, for the love of ..."

"Guys, shut it already!" another voice, a familiar voice, a voice that belonged to my brother Jughead, spoke up. "We're right in front of my trailer!"

Softly, slowly, I crept over towards the window overlooking my pull-out bed. Holding my breath, I seized the edge of the curtain with two fingers and slightly lifted up the corner of it. Cautiously, I poked my head around the window sill.

There was one, two, three, four figures, clad with black, that were standing not three paces away from our trailer door! Three motorcycles, the hot metal of their streamlined shapes still sparking, had been propped up on stands nearby.

The closest person to the door was wearing the unmistakable grey of Jughead's beanie. He had his back turned to the window and he had his hands stuffed in his pockets.

The second nearest person was the girl; Toni, was it? She had long beach waves, each foiled with light pink hair dye, rippling down her back. She was popping a wad of chewing gum between her lips and leaning lazily up against the side of another boy who was right next to her. Fangs.

His dark hair was spiked up and styled to perfection, so much so that it looked like he'd used an entire container of gel to get his hair just right. He was rolling a cigarette between the thumb and forefinger of his left hand and was tapping out some of the leftover ash onto the ground.

My eyes flittered over towards the last person in the circle, a teen boy. He was crouched down on his knees, inspecting something on his motorcycle. I couldn't see his features very clearly as he wasn't fully facing the window of the trailer. However, as Jughead uttered his last comment, the boy slowly lifted up his head to gaze towards my brother.

My breath hitched in my throat. My entire body froze. My eyes widened and my breath quickened as I realised who he was. It was him. The boy I left behind, the boy whose heart I broke.

His thick ebony hair fell across his forehead in waves. His deep brown eyes glinted as they reflected the light from Fangs' cigarette. A large Serpent jacket was wrapped around his back and chest, disclosing any skin or muscle that might have shown. However, I did manage to catch sight of the glimmer of a silver chain that was hanging around his neck.

Slowly, he straightened up, his tall figure overshadowing everyone else. His arms were hanging by his sides and, as Fangs stomped his cigarette out on the grass nearby, I saw the shimmering metal of rings as they graced his strong, slender fingers.

"We need to move out," he spoke up, giving Jughead a firm nod in the process. His voice was deep and rich, gravelly and rough, smooth and sexy ... all at the same time.

Jughead responded with a slight incline of his head. "Okay. I'll catch up with you guys tomorrow ... that is, if Dad doesn't make me trot after Jelly and - and her all day."

I bit my lip as a wave of sadness crashed over me. Jughead wouldn't even say my name in front of his friends or in front of him ...

Toni and Fangs rolled their eyes and muttered a string of incoherent words as they turned back towards their bikes. He, however, stayed for one moment longer, looking Jughead in the eye as he said, "We're all going to the quarry tomorrow so, if you can, meet us there at ten."

Jughead sighed. "Yeah, sure. I can't wait."

"Are you being sarcastic?" he queried, raising his eyebrows demandingly.

Jughead shook his head. "No, no, I'm dead serious. I legit cannot wait for this summer to be over. I just want her to leave."

He paused as he considered my brother's words. "I know that you're hurting, Jug," he spoke up, more softly this time. "I am too. Just know that the Serpents are here for you, no matter what, okay?"

Jughead cracked a thin smile as he held up his hand in a wave of dismissal. "Thanks, Sweet Pea, and goodnight."

As the sound of the motorcycles roaring back to life erupted, I quickly ducked down below the window. I used the sudden spurt of noise to cover any sounds that I made as I leaped hastily back into bed and yanked the blankets up and over me.

Screwing my eyes tightly shut, I listened as the motorcycles zoomed away, carrying Sweet Pea off with them.

Gif: Mackenzie as she overhears the gangsters' conversation.

* PLEASE REMEMBER to give this chapter a vote if you enjoyed and I'd love to hear any feedback from my readers; so pepper me with questions. If you're confused, I'll try and clarify it for you. If you want more information on a certain point, I'll do my best not to give you spoilers. If you just wanna chat 'bout random stuff, then I'm in *

Also, YAYY, Sweet Pea's finally here! What did you think about him?

Q: What would you have done if you were in Kenzie's shoes and had overheard this conversation? Would you have tried to suck it up, even though it may have been painful to hear people talking about you like that? Or would you have completely broken down and cried yourself to sleep?