[The strain that exists between Jughead and Betty is there between Veronica and Archie. The latter two are currently at a different kind of impasse—broken up, almost out of necessity, following the active investigation into her father's involvement with Fred's injury. They're back to a "will they or won't they" that's exhausting for Veronica, especially since she'd rather just be there for Archie right now. The pain he feels is real. The guilt she feels at potentially being the child of the man who nearly ended Fred Andrews' life is also palpable. There's nothing she can do about it.
Everyone knows about this strain and the issues there, but Veronica has done her best to shoulder it all and carry on. What else can she do? It's not like she's a stranger to what her parents are capable of, and now it feels like it hit even closer, even harder than before. Even trying to be there for Archie feels like an act meant to make herself feel better. After Ethel, she knows better than to push, and this is a greater extreme.
All of this is why she welcomed this weird act of renewal on Cheryl's part, especially since Cheryl herself is now a very clearly labeled pariah among the Riverdale community. Dealing with that felt ... easier. Cheryl is her friend, even if their relationship sometimes steers sharply into the enemies part of frenemies, but lately it's been more friendly. Almost out of necessity. Almost because it has to be that way.
In all of this, she's done her best to be there for Betty, to try to help her understand Jughead's mindset. But it's complicated, at least on her end. She had connected with Betty all but immediately, had envisioned a life with them side by side. Their pact had been important. Now that their relationships were on the rocks (or just ruins on the rocks, as it may be), it feels more complicated. Kevin's comments toward Betty are ones that Veronica has been privy to, because that's just how it is, but they were more fleeting in her presence. Now, she can't help but feel like her ease and smiles and everything else were hiding some very apparent signs that were always there.
She had said that Betty and Jughead seemed like soulmates. She believed it. Who says you can't have two? Whose soul is only linked to one other person?]
Nothing changes that. Nothing comes between that. We made a pact. [Some part of her is aware that Betty might be doing this to make herself feel better, and that part wars with the same part of her that wants this—because Veronica wants to feel better, too. It feels like an easy answer in the midst of all their pain.]
If we do this, we'll have to be prepared for what comes next. It's not just a game. [Veronica voices this because, at times, as bold and loud as she can be, she's willing to be the voice of reason. When she had kissed Archie that day, she had pretended it was just the game, had allowed herself to slip into the feeling of selfishness that led to her kissing him. But she knew better, deep down; she knows better now.]
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Everyone knows about this strain and the issues there, but Veronica has done her best to shoulder it all and carry on. What else can she do? It's not like she's a stranger to what her parents are capable of, and now it feels like it hit even closer, even harder than before. Even trying to be there for Archie feels like an act meant to make herself feel better. After Ethel, she knows better than to push, and this is a greater extreme.
All of this is why she welcomed this weird act of renewal on Cheryl's part, especially since Cheryl herself is now a very clearly labeled pariah among the Riverdale community. Dealing with that felt ... easier. Cheryl is her friend, even if their relationship sometimes steers sharply into the enemies part of frenemies, but lately it's been more friendly. Almost out of necessity. Almost because it has to be that way.
In all of this, she's done her best to be there for Betty, to try to help her understand Jughead's mindset. But it's complicated, at least on her end. She had connected with Betty all but immediately, had envisioned a life with them side by side. Their pact had been important. Now that their relationships were on the rocks (or just ruins on the rocks, as it may be), it feels more complicated. Kevin's comments toward Betty are ones that Veronica has been privy to, because that's just how it is, but they were more fleeting in her presence. Now, she can't help but feel like her ease and smiles and everything else were hiding some very apparent signs that were always there.
She had said that Betty and Jughead seemed like soulmates. She believed it. Who says you can't have two? Whose soul is only linked to one other person?]
Nothing changes that. Nothing comes between that. We made a pact. [Some part of her is aware that Betty might be doing this to make herself feel better, and that part wars with the same part of her that wants this—because Veronica wants to feel better, too. It feels like an easy answer in the midst of all their pain.]
If we do this, we'll have to be prepared for what comes next. It's not just a game. [Veronica voices this because, at times, as bold and loud as she can be, she's willing to be the voice of reason. When she had kissed Archie that day, she had pretended it was just the game, had allowed herself to slip into the feeling of selfishness that led to her kissing him. But she knew better, deep down; she knows better now.]