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Betty Cooper and Jughead Jones were the perfect couple. It seemed that no matter who broke up, hooked up, or got knocked up in their crazy town, they remained steady. They had been through so much together in the 5 years that they had been dating, so it only seemed natural that it was time for them to take the next step in their relationship.
At least, Jughead hoped that was how they both felt. The dark-haired boy was currently pacing the floor in the dorm room that he shared with Archie, nervous beyond belief. He was planning on proposing to Betty tonight, and his normally collected composure was cracking rapidly. What if she thought it was too soon? What if she didn't want to get married right after they graduated from college? Maybe she would want to explore more, even see other guys? At that thought, Jughead knew he had to stop overanalyzing what her response might be, otherwise he was going to lose his damn mind.
Luckily for Jughead’s nerves, Archie opened the door just then, back from his exams.
“Man, have you got perfect timing. I need to ask you something.”
“Go ahead, bro, shoot.” Archie responded, sitting on Jug’s twin bed.
“Okay, so I’m going to propose to Betty tonight,” Archie looked shocked, but he quickly regained his composure, “and I wanted to know what you think she’s going to say.” Jughead asked, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead.
“Jug, that’s great! I always knew you guys were going to get married someday, I just didn’t know it was going to be so soon! However, I think she’s going to be over the moon. You shouldn’t doubt her, buddy. I think everything is going to perfect.” Archie said, patting his friend on the shoulder.
“Really? That makes me feel so much better, thanks man. She’s been dropping hints left and right, so I think she’s gonna say yes. Hey, do you want to see the ring?” Archie grinned and nodded, so Jughead took it out of his pocket.
While the two boys were admiring the ring, they had no idea that a similar conversation was taking place in the girls’ dorm room.
~
Betty Cooper had been in love with Jughead Jones forever, it seemed. She knew his fears and his flaws, and loved them because they were a part of him. However, if there was one major thing her boyfriend was bad at, it was taking a hint. She had taken to reading bridal magazines when she knew he was around, talking to him about beautiful rings that she had seen in the jeweler’s window, and how she had caught the bouquet at Cheryl and Toni’s wedding. He never seemed to get it however, and she was beyond frustrated with waiting for him.
Today, that frustration was increased exponentially by a wedding invitation arriving in the mail. It would seem that Ethel Muggs was getting married. Betty hadn’t spoken to her since high school, but she was happy for her. At least somebody’s boyfriend could take a hint.
Veronica got home just then, fresh from taking her final exam. Betty got up to greet her with a hug.
“V! How was the test?” Betty asked, beaming with pride for her best friend. Veronica feigned sadness.
“Oh, well it was.....amazing! I absolutely crushed it!” Veronica’s fake sadness had given way to a huge smile, and her and Betty jumped in excitement.
“That’s fantastic, V! I’m so happy for you. We have to celebrate tonight. I think Archie’s finals were today too, so he can tell us how those went.”
“That sounds great. I’ll call the guys right now, and ask them where they want to go.”
While Veronica was talking to Archie on the phone, Betty got lost in her thoughts again. A night like tonight would be the perfect time for Jughead to propose. If only, she thought. Suddenly, an idea hit her like lightning. Why wait for him to propose, when she could ask him to marry her! It was absolutely perfect, he would never see it coming!
“Hey, earth to Betty!” Betty was jerked from her thoughts by Veronica waving her hand in front of her face. “What were you thinking about? You’re smiling like a maniac! Frankly, you’re scaring me a little.”
“I’m going to propose to Jughead tonight.” Veronica reeled back on her heels, clearly startled.
“You’re doing what?! Where did this come from? I mean, I think it’s great, I just had no clue you even wanted to get married right now.”
“I’ve been wanting him to propose for a while now, but he has no idea. So why not ask him instead?” Betty grinned, clearly excited.
“You’re absolutely right. Take the bull by the horns, B. I’ll help with whatever you need.” Veronica hugged her best friend, excited at the prospect of Betty’s impending engagement.
“Thank you, V. That means a lot. Okay!”, Betty clapped her hands together excitedly, “there’s so much to do! We have to write my speech, get a ring, figure out when to pop the question.....” Betty continued naming things, blissfully unaware that her “clueless” boyfriend was doing the exact same thing.
~
“Okay, Arch. I think I’ve finally got the plan all figured out. We’re all going to be at the restaurant tonight, so I’m going to do it then. I’m going to tape the ring to the inside of the cover of this vintage Nancy Drew book that I got from an antique store. I’ll pretend that’s a gift I want to give her, she’ll unwrap it, open it up, find the ring and bam, one knee and speech.” Jughead finished, looking at Archie for his response.
“That’s an amazing proposal, Jug. She’s going to go batshit crazy over it.”
“I hope so. I worked really hard on this. This is going to be a night we’ll never forget.”
“Absolutely, man.” Archie checked his watch. “We better get going or we’re going to be late for our reservation. I don’t know why Betty and Veronica insisted on going to this fancy-ass restaurant. Any place that requires a suit jacket is too stuffy for me.”
“Hey, don’t complain. This “fancy-ass restaurant” they chose is much better suited for my proposal than Poppa’s Pizzeria anyway.”
“Yeah, I know, but I guarantee the food isn’t any better. Poppa’s pizza beats crab legs and caviar any day.” Archie said, with a disgusted look. Jughead laughed, and put his arm around his best friend.
“Come on, man. We gotta go.”
~
Betty and Veronica got to the restaurant first so that they could make sure everything was set up, Betty a bundle of nerves.
“Let’s run through everything one more time. We eat our meal, and then I tell the waiter to bring dessert. He’ll know that means it’s time to bring to bring out a strawberry milkshake, which will have a tag that says “pull me” on the outside attached to string that is tied to the baggie that has the ring in it. Then he pulls the string, finds it, is shocked, cue me on one knee and speech.” Betty said, reciting her plan from memory.
“It’s perfect, Betty. He’ll be so surprised! You couldn’t screw this up if you tried. Everything will be just right, I promise.” Veronica smiled assuredly at her best friend, not knowing the plan her boyfriend and Jughead had already come up with.
It was certainly going to be a night of surprise for everyone.
~
Archie and Jughead arrived shortly after the girls’ conversation, and the couples greeted one another with “hello’s” and kisses. All four of them couldn’t seem to stop smiling, but both Betty and Jughead were too anxious to notice that the other seemed as nervous as they were.
The group sat down at the table, and casual conversation was made in an attempt at normalcy by both sides.
“So Arch, how were your exams?” Betty asked, holding Jughead’s hand on the table.
“They went pretty well, I think.” Archie looked over at Veronica sitting next to him. “Hey babe, your exams were today. How did you do?”
“Great! I feel very confident.” Archie kissed her on the cheek.
“That’s amazing! I’m so happy for you!”
“I’m glad me and Bets took ours already”, Jughead said. “I wouldn’t want to have to worry about that tonight too.” He laughed, and then his eyes widened when he realized what he had said. Archie’s did too, and he quickly swooped in to save Jughead’s secret.
“Yeah, I’m nervous about graduation too. Me and Jug were talking about it on the way over here, about how awful it would be if you like tripped on your gown or something.” The group laughed, and Jughead’s comment flew under the radar of both girls.
The men breathed a sigh of relief, and the conversation continued on. They talked about after-graduation plans, funny stories from college, and Ethel’s upcoming wedding, which the boys had also received an invitation too. Archie and Veronica did most of the talking, with Betty and Jughead insanely nervous about their proposals. Neither Archie or Veronica realized that they were both covering their best friend’s ass for the same reason.
Their meal came and was eaten, and then it was time for Betty to order the dessert. She did so with ease, not messing up at all. It seemed that everything was going perfect, and Jughead didn’t suspect a thing. That is, until....
“Bets, I have something for you. It’s a graduation present.” He handed her the wrapped book with the ring inside, barely able to contain himself.
“Oh my gosh, thank you Jug! I actually have something for you too, but I wanted to give it to you during dessert. Can we open our things together then?” Betty asked, hoping she wasn’t being too obvious. Jughead was a bit taken aback, disappointed he would have to wait for a bit to propose, but he agreed. Veronica shot Betty a covert thumbs up for her smooth move.
Soon, Jughead’s milkshake arrived along with ice cream sundaes for the rest of the group. He started to protest and say that he hadn’t ordered a milkshake, but Betty shushed him.
“It’s alright Jug, I ordered it. I thought it would be nice to have something sentimental tonight. Plus, your gift is inside!” Betty said, smiling excitedly.
“Aah, clever. But you’re opening yours first, I’m too excited to see you open it.” He said, anticipating her reaction to the ring.
“Okay, fine. But only because I love you.” She pecked him on the cheek, and then pulled the string on the package. The wrapping opened, and she saw what was inside.
“Oh my gosh, is this a vintage Nancy Drew book?” Betty squealed, amazed at how thoughtful her boyfriend was. “This is amazing, Jug! Thank you!” She hugged him tightly.
“You’re welcome, but that’s not all. Look inside the cover.” Betty looked puzzled, but did what she was told. When the book fell open, she saw the ring taped to the cover, but her mind struggled to compute what she was seeing.
“Oh. my. God. OhmyGodohmyGod. Is- Is this? Are you seriously?” Betty was in shock, sitting still as a stone. Across the table, Archie was grinning, and Veronica was just as shell-shocked as Betty.
Jughead dropped to one knee, and Betty became coherent enough to interject.
“Hold on, just one second. I-I can’t believe this! I know this is going to sound really weird, but do you see that tag on your milkshake?” Betty said, her hand shaking as she pointed. Jughead was extremely confused.
“Are you really interrupting my proposal to you to talk about a milkshake?” He said in disbelief.
“Pull on it.” Betty said, still reeling.
“Seriously?” Jug couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“Pull the damn string, Jones!”
“Alright!” Jughead got off of his knee and sat in his chair in front of the milkshake. This proposal was not at all going as planned. He pulled on the string, and a baggie containing- was that a fucking ring? Now it was his and Archie’s turn to be completely dumbfounded.
“Wait a second, you were-” Jughead was cut off by Betty getting down on her knee.
“I am so shocked right now, and I know you are too, but honestly I think this is the most perfect proposal that we could have. We’ve always done everything together, why not this too? I love you so much, Jughead Jones, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and create so many more amazing and crazy moments just like this one. What do you say, will you marry me?” Betty was visibly crying by the end of her speech, and Jughead was definitely tearing up too.
Jughead got on his knees with her, and gathered her hands in his.
“Only if you’ll marry me, Elizabeth Cooper.” She laughed, and nodded her head enthusiastically, tears still sparkling in her eyes.
They stood to their feet and got the rings out, placing them on each other’s hands. Archie and Veronica were beaming behind them, and they weren't the only ones. The restaurant had started paying attention, and when Betty and Jughead sealed their engagement with a searing kiss, the patrons erupted into applause.
Betty and Jughead separated, with Betty blushing as she realized that they had just passionately kissed in front of over 100 people. The couple sat down, and Jughead, noticing his new fiancée's blush, said softly in her ear,
“Get used to it, babe. You’re going to have to do it all over again on our wedding day.” Betty laughed, the blush receding from her cheeks. They looked at each other and both thought at the same time,
I love you so much.