“I’m not going to say it back,” Archie whispers. Betty chokes out a sob, but nods and does her best not to collapse against him. “That doesn’t mean what you think, though, Betty.”
She lifts her head slowly, her face wet from tears, and looks up at him with her brows raised. “It doesn’t?”
Archie looks around tentatively, then finds her gaze, holding it, and shaking his head: a firm no. He doesn’t say anything, but he does slide his hands to her cheeks and thumb away her tears. He does rotate his wrists and tip her face up. He does let his eyes search over her features before he leans down and kisses her in a way that makes Betty feel like her whole body has been submerged in a tub of warm water.
This is how it starts, but it is not how it ends.
Archie and Betty, behind everyone’s back, but somehow it doesn’t feel like cheating… How do I get into ships from fandoms I’m not in? 🙂