{ "we're running out of time, don't wait for the truth " -- darkside, alan walker, ft. au/ra and tomine harket, 2018 }

Evie had begun to doze off watching some boring talk show when she was jolted awake by the sound of her cell phone vibrating against the coffee table.

She smiled as she looked down and saw who was calling. "Hey, Red." She answered.

"Hi, Honeybee. How's everything going now that you're back home?" Archie's voice was soothing to her ears. His presence, or in this case, his voice, was calming after everything she'd gone through.

"It's going okay. Be better if you would come visit me." She teased.

Archie laughed. "Believe me, I would be there with you right this second if I wasn't -- working on something urgent." He said, stopping abruptly before no doubt mentioning the Black Hood.

"Well, I have nothing to do. I could help you work on this 'something'." Evie replied.

"Thanks, Honeybee, but this is something I have to work on by myself." He said with a sigh.

"Taking down the Black Hood is not solely your responsibility." The Serpent girl stated. "We all want to know who he is. We all want revenge. We all want him stopped. It's not just you."

The boy sighed before responding once again. "I know, but I can't let you get hurt again."

A forced laugh came out of the girl's mouth. "Let me get hurt again? Excuse me, Andrews, but no one 'let me' get hurt except the Black Hood. My safety is not your responsibility, it's individually mine. I'm my own person, it's my responsibility to --"

"I know, I know, Evie, but --"

"Don't call me that." She said with a sharp intake of breath. "You know what my name is."

"Jesus, Honeybee." He muttered under his breath. "Don't you think that I feel guilty for what happened? That was supposed to be me that got shot, and you pushed me out of the way. You got hit, not me. You're the one that died on that operating table, that had to be revived, for God's sakes! It should have been me!"

"It should have been nobody, Red, but it just so happened to be me. This is not your fault, and you know this. You have no reason to feel any sort of guilt." She replied.

"But I do. And I'm not going to stop until that man is locked up or dead." The redhead stated.

"Or until you're dead, Archie." Evie scoffed. "You can't take down a serial killer on your own. There are people that want the same things as you, Red, that can help you." She took a deep breath before saying, "You can't do everything on your own."

"Well, maybe I need to, at least for now." He replied. "That way no one else gets hurt."

She laughed again in frustration. "But you! If you're going to take down the Black Hood, Archie Andrews, you need a team. And, as cliche as it is, 'there's no 'I' in 'team'. This man is powerful and dangerous, Andrews, and he will kill you if you go after him alone. Besides, I'm the one that knows the most about him, now. He kidnapped me and tried to kill me, and guess what? I escaped. I lived. I can take us to where the clues are. You just have to trust me."

The boy was silent for so long that Evie thought he set the phone down without hanging up. He finally spoke in a quiet voice. "I trust you."

"Good." She replied with a sigh. "Now, just wait until I'm out of these bandages, and then I promise you, we'll take down this son of a bitch together."

"What if something happens again?" Archie asked in a quiet voice.

"I'm not afraid." Evie replied. She'd always acted fearless before, but deep down, she was scared. Scared of the Black Hood, scared of dying, scared of heights. Now, none of those things scared her. She was ready for whatever life could throw at her, because she was certain nothing could be worse than what she had already gone through. "I'm not scared anymore. If he doesn't have our fear, he doesn't have anything; he's weak. We can take him down. We will take him down."

—

Sweet Pea didn't usually let his feelings show. He wasn't one to get overly emotional — neither was his sister. Having to grow up so quickly to take care of each other meant the Morgan twins were fairly distant when it came to connecting with their emotions.

But, as he drove on his motorcycle to Pop's, his helmet hiding any view of his face from prying eyes, he let his emotion show. Tears streamed down his face as he quietly sobbed, stressed and relieved and angry over everything that had happened. He was overjoyed that his sister would be okay, but she almost wasn't, and that scared the shit out of him. What would he do without her? He wasn't sure. He was going to kill that Black Hood, that son of a bitch that tried to kill his sister and many more.

He finally reached the diner and pulled off his helmet, then ran a hand through his dark hair. He glanced at himself in the small rearview mirror attached to his bike. He looked composed. Composed enough, anyways.

He got off the bike and headed inside, nodding at Pop as he made his way to the counter.

"How's Miss Genevieve doing?" Pop asked as he wiped down the counter.

"Good enough to demand food from here, I guess." Sweet Pea said, smiling.

Pop chuckled and turned around, grabbing a takeout bag. "What can I get her?"

"Double cheeseburger and a large butterscotch shake for her, and then can I get a large order of fries and an orange cream?" The boy asked, settling himself down at the counter.

"You sure can." Pop said with a smile as he got to work preparing the food.

Sweet Pea sat quietly as Pop readied the food, not noticing the girl that slid in on the stool next to him.

"Hey, Sweet Pea." 

The voice was soft and familiar, causing him to turn around.

"Oh. Hey, McCoy." He nodded at her, then turned back to watch Pop at the grill.

"How's your sister doing? I was so sorry to hear what had happened." Josie continued, causing Sweet Pea to turn towards her once again. He wasn't sure Josie and his sister ran in the same circle, but then again, Riverdale was a small town.

"She's doing better." He replied. "The food's for her, so ..."

Josie smiled. "That's good. I'm here to pick up an order for my mom ... another late night I guess." 

"I've got your order right here, Josie." Pop interjected, handing the girl a neatly packed bag. 

"Thanks, Pop." Josie replied, setting down some money on the counter. "Keep the change."

Pop nodded and smiled at her in gratitude and then continued with Sweet Pea's order. "Thank you, Josie. Tell your mom hi for me."

"Will do." She said with a sweet smile. Josie then turned to Sweet Pea, smiling slightly. "See you around, Sweet Pea." She said before leaving.

Sweet Pea watched her walk away, a faint smile on his face. She was cute, for a Northsider. "See you around."

did i just hint at the sweet pea and josie thing we see in season 3? yes, yes i did. still mad they didn't do more with that in season 3, so i'm doing it myself.

let me know what y'all thought!

mads