-

''HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT THE NEW KIDS?''

Kevin Keller approached Veronica Lodge in the student lounge that next day in school, tossing his bookbag on the couch whereas he stood behind it.

He placed his hands on his hips as Veronica nods her head. ''I have, actually, and although I am more than relieved to lose the new girl title, it is ridiculous how fast word spreads around this town.''

He chuckles, ''That's because these new kids are completely new. See, at least your parents have some history here, they're fresh out of California-'' He cocks his head to the side. ''So I've heard.''

His lips tugs into a smirk, he was ready to gush over many details he's heard of their identity.

''Do you know that they live right across the street from Betty and Archie?''

Her eyes went wide and her face grew as her lips formed almost an oval shape. ''Seriously?''

''Yeah, and-'' He rolls his eyes. ''Though I have not seen them at all this morning, I hear that they're siblings. Guy and a girl. Ugh, super hot while we're at it.''

A sigh falls from Hazel lips as she enters the lounge, mentally defeated by the day already.

She heads towards the vending machine while Veronica giggles lightly. ''Did you also happen to come across their names, Gossip Girl?''

''Nobody's heard of the girl, but as for the guy, they say Franklin,'' He shrugs his shoulders. ''And by they? I mean Ginger and Tina.''

She shakes her head just as she punched in the code for a bag of barbecue potato chips.

''Now on to bigger and more important ordeals,'' Kevin huffs a puff air of from his chest, a little too dramatically from what Hazel heard. ''It's this quintessential right of passage, making out with your boy or girlfriend at the movies.''

The raven hair girl cocks a brow. ''Why don't we go together? I can't promise any action, but maybe I'll bring you good luck.''

Their attention was caught when Hazel's bag of chips dropped drastically from it's high spot of the machine.

Kevin furrows his brows as she bends down for her snack, he narrowed his eyes as he observes her features from behind.

Until it finally hit him like a ton of bricks. ''Oh my god.''

He glanced back at Veronica, who questions him with an arch brow and a subtle shake of her before turning to Hazel.

She still stood at the vending machines as she opened her bag of chips.

''I blatantly went over possibly any false details over you and your brother while you were standing in the same room,'' Hazel turns to them, the heels of her boots clanking against the floor before she plops a chip in her mouth. ''I am so sorry.''

As she scoffs, she smirks. ''So it would make it better if I wasn't in the same room?''

Kevin Keller never felt so stuck trying to think of a positive response that wouldn't entirely backfire his intentions. ''Um..-''

She waves him off. ''Relax, I'm all I've heard all day.''

Veronica jerks her head back. ''You seemed flattered?''

''Well,'' She breathes out. She takes a step closer towards the main seating area while her tongue clicked her teeth. ''What girl doesn't enjoy a little attention?''

She flattens her lips into a straight line as she got closer. ''I'm Hazel Michael, by the way. And his name isn't Franklin, it's Francis.''

Kevin looked at Veronica and shook his head. ''Leave it to Cheryl's dimwit minions to only get the name's wrong.''

He looks up at Hazel and smiles. ''I'm Kevin.''

The raven hair presses a hand against her chest. ''And I'm Veronica Lodge.''

Her light colored locks dangle as Hazel tilts her head to the side. ''Very mondaine.''

Her devilish stained lips gaped at her pleasingly. ''I appreciate a girl who knows her sense. Say, have you seen those fliers about the Twilight drive-in?''

She snickers. ''Seen it? It's too hard to miss.''

''Kevin and I, as well as some of our friends are going tonight for its last night open,'' She propounds. ''Why don't you come with us? Get to know each other?''

''I can't,'' She strains hesitantly. Their features had wavered from disappointment. Was she really going to deny a chance of making friends?

''I've got a few things to do at home.''

''Oh,'' Veronica pushed her lips into a semi pout when looking over to Kevin. He didn't know how else to respond except shrugs his shoulders. ''Well, maybe some other time then?''

She sucks in her bottom lip and barely nods her head.

''Great,'' Kevin sarcastically remarks by nodding his head. ''Another night, another hag.''

As if on cue, Cheryl Blossom enters the lounge, dressed in a red aesthetic attire.

Veronica laughs before Cheryl counters, ''Speaking of hags.. Veronica,'' She plants a perfectly manicured hand, her nails painted a sheer cherry coating feigning her sympathy. ''It's so devastating to me that your mother has to sink to such unspeakable lows just to keep those knockoff Hermes bags on your arm.''

Kevin rolls his eyes, his head lagging to the side to face Hazel, whose brows were inching closer towards each other with curiosity.

''What's next?'' The red head shrugs her shoulders. ''Selling her hair extensions?''

''My mom's a waitress, Cheryl, not Fantine,'' Veronica matter of factly points out. ''And your faux concern reeks of ulterior motive. What is it?''

Her hand slips from her chest, falling back to her side as she straightens her posture. Her entire demeanor was revealed when she responds, ''Only to remind you of your place in this school, nay, the town's social hierarchy-''

She turns to Hazel, lifting only her forearm and fans her hand. ''New girl, take notes.''

She cocks a brow from her furrowed ones as Veronica taunts, ''Threatened much? Don't worry, you may be a stock character from a 90's teen movie,'' Veronica carried along her anology while taking a stand. ''But I'm not, and neither is Hazel. That's her name, not new girl. And what does any of this have to do with my mom being a waitress?''

A smirk perks up on Cheryl's matte lipstick as she spills, ''It's just that I saw her talking to a Southside Serpent last night, in the alley behind Pop's.''

The confidence in Veronica falters as she turns to face Kevin and Hazel. Though Hazel remained curious, more confused than before, Kevin was now watching the scene with wide eyes.

''They were having an extremely heated, intimate discussion.''

By now, Cheryl was already swiping against the screen of her phone, alarming more of Kevin and Hazel's attention given that they wandered closer to the screen.

Hazel knew this was none of her business, but the trio seemed to include her in more of the conversation than she expected.

She flips the screen towards them and suggest, ''See for yourself.''

And just as describe, the undeniable proof was saved on the screen of her phone. There was an older raven hair version of Veronica Lodge, dressed in a yellow apron, the conversation with a man in a motorcycle jacket seemed as intense as she described.

Pulling the phone away from her sight, she displays a sweet insincere smile before turning at the heel of her foot. Her long ponytail nearly smacking Veronica in the face before she walked off.

''Who,'' Veronica turns to face Kevin and Hazel, the two were standing close behind her. ''Or what is a Southside Serpent?''

Hazel's furrowed brows never ceased as she turns to face Kevin. He seemed to be the only one between Veronica and herself that knows more about the situation at the moment.

''They're this gang of bikers who pretty much stays on the south side of town,'' He simply explains before dragging on, ''And thank God, 'cause they're sort of dangerous. Drug dealers and petty thieves.''

Veronica shakes her head. ''Then what was my mom doing with one of them?''

-

That Saturday evening in the Michael's house was a scream off in the upstairs hallway starring Francis Michael and Hazel Michael.

''What don't you understand about the word no?'' Hazel exclaims.

''But why don't you-''

He sucks his teeth and slaps his arms against his side as she interrupts him. ''Say it with me, Franny. N-o; no!''

''Argh!'' He loudly groans.

Serena was heard stomping up the steps, confounded by the amount noise made. ''What the hell is going on up here?''

She rounds around the top of the steps, reaching closer to Hazel's backside. The brunette, herself, continued her peeved stance with her arms folded across her chest, one leg propped out and her weight dropped in the other, and her eyes narrowed to slits. Her glares could practically kill her brother at the moment.

''Well?'' Her aunt's volume gotten louder. ''I'm waiting.''

''A couple of guys and I from the football team are going to the drive in and I want Hazel to come,'' Francis explained with the shrug of his shoulders.

Their aunt quickly shifted with confusion as she jerks her head back. ''Why?''

He held his arms out from his side, supposedly astonished. ''I can't be a good big brother and want her to be social? Or even better, get laid?''

Serena cocks a brow. ''This coming from the boy who rubbed poison ivy on her when she was three.''

''That wasn't on purpose,'' He urgently defends. ''The Wilkin's kid next door said it was like pixie dust for Neverland, I wanted her to be a fairy.''

Hazel was honestly flabbergasted. ''Peter Pan is a glorified version for death being Neverland, you dumb ass!

''Yeah,'' He flatly lets out as if it was obvious. ''Now I know, I wouldn't have known that at the age of four.''

''Haz,'' Serena sighs. ''What's the big deal if you go?''

''What's the big deal if I don't?'' She argues.

''It's just the movies,'' Francis insisted. ''What is the worst thing that can happen?''

Hazel Michael couldn't exactly answer the question. There were multiple answers. Maybe it was because tonight she wanted to spend her third day in a new town curled up in bed binge watching a series on Netflix. Maybe it was because the jocks at Riverdale high have egotistical standards with exceptional fuck boy rumors.

Or, maybe it was because as Francis Micheal drove past vehicles for a spot in the lot, she would eventually encounter Kevin Keller and Veronica Lodge, the only decent people she's met and planned good intentions with them.

''Hazel?'' Veronica calls with furrowed brows.

It had just been a coincidence that Francis parked right next to Kevin's truck.

She sheepishly smiles and awkwardly waves at the two. ''Hi.''

''I thought you said that you couldn't make it?''

She flattened her lips into a thin line and inhales through her nose. ''Change of plans, I guess.''

Kevin and Veronica nod their heads as Hazel and Francis got out of their vehicle.

Hazel merely walked towards the front of the car before her older brother rounded around the driver's side to meet her.

''Oh my god,'' Kevin's face fell in a gasp.

With her gaze still focused on the screen, Veronica borely asks, ''What is it?''

He points a finger at the older Michael as the siblings were involved in their own conversation. ''Is that her brother, Francis Michael?''

The raven hair female peers away from the screen and instantly mirrored Kevin's reaction. ''Oh my god.''

''Right?'' He smirks.

''So I'll leave you the keys and meet with you at the end, alright?'' He arranged, handing Hazel the set of keys for their ride home.

''Yeah,'' She bops her head. After placing the keys in the pocket of her bomber jacket, he walks off, finding the group of jocks he befriended literally on his first day.

Once Francis was out of ear shot length, she turns at the heel of her foot to face the two that she knowingly knew were watching them.

She flicks a finger at a spot next to Veronica and asks in a small voice, ''You got room for one more?''

She smiles brighty, lifting the blanket as a welcome. ''Of course.''

A small smile conquers her lips as she climbs in to the back of the truck, enveloping herself into the warmth of the blanket.

Kevin hands her a bucket of the buttery snack he bought and offers, ''Popcorn?''

''Uh,'' She stammers. She felt it'd be rude to munch on somebody else's snack, one she wasn't really friends with from the start. But then again, she did want some. ''Sure. Thanks.''

As she reached her hands, delving into the treat, a sigh falls from her lips. ''I forgot to tell you, Veronica..''

She looks at her, waiting for her to continue on where she was going with this.

''Thanks for standing up for me,'' Her head lugs the side. ''And I hope everything worked out with your mom and the mosquitoes.''

Kevin accidentally snorted. ''Did you just called the serpents, mosquitoes?''

A shade of pink rose on her cheeks. There goes her moment, now they must think of her as a joke. As if she couldn't be taken seriously.

Veronica giggles softly alongside of Kevin's laughter.

''I am so gonna use that now.''

She furrows her brows at him. So, what she said was a good thing?

Veronica placed a hand on her shoulder, diverting the topic back on track. ''You don't have to thank me. Cheryl works like a mean girls movie, her tactics are foreseeable.''

''Speak of the devil,'' Kevin trails off as a vehicle as cherry coated as Cheryl Blosssoms nails approached in in front of them.

She gets out of her car and tell the three, ''Make some room, outcasts.''

Hazel pouts in confusions. Wasn't she just taunting Veronica about her mother in mischief?

The space became small and huddled when Cheryl took her seat beside Hazel. The availability of laying in any comfortable position was no longer possible. They had to sit with their legs laying flat and straight, or at least one leg propped.

If both legs were propped, hip bones would have been jabbing one another and then it wouldn't have been pretty.

They were a couple of another minutes into the movie, now with Cheryl and Hazel accompanying the two as Kevin drawls his comment, ''That hair.''

''That jacket.''

''Those eyes,'' Hazel adds along after Veronica.

However, Cheryl seemed to have killed the flow when she mentions, ''Jason always adored the drive-in.''

Hazel was back to furrowing her brows. Who the hell was Jason?

She turns to find Kevin rolling his eyes, turning to face Veronica with pure annoyance. She appeared to hold the same as he did.

A roar of laughter and beer bottles clanking erupted loudly from behind them.

''Southside trash,'' Kevin sneers as Cheryl reached over for a twine of red licorice from Veronica's lap.

Veronica shakes her head. ''They've been doing that since the opening credits.''

Just when the group of gang busters gotten louder, Kevin turns and hissed, ''Shh!''

They eyed him with wonder, as if he really were to believe that those antics would really get them to be quiet.

So instead, they retaliated by hissing like a den of snakes.

They continued with their noise, leaving it to Veronica to take a stand.

''Hey!'' She calls after them. ''You know what happens to a snake when a Louis Vuitton heel steps on it? Shut the hell up, or you'll find out!''

''Ooh,'' Hazel winced, amazed by the savagely perception the girl with jet black hair can handle.

She gotten a round of applause, praising her for being the one to stand up for a proper movie night.

She bows around those cheering her on and mumbling under her breath, ''Thank you.''

Veronica roughly exhales as she sits back down, attempting to find what was once her comfortablility.

''I cannot believe you just threatened a gang banger.''

She rolls her eyes, ''I've dealt with worse in the East Village. I just hate when people disrespect my cinematic experience.''

''Regardless,'' Hazel nods her head vigorously. ''Still bad ass.''

She perks up. ''Thank you, Hazel.''

While smiling at the brunette, she reaches for the bucket of popcorn from Kevin's grasp and snatches it. She hands over to Veronica and suggests, ''How about a refill?''

Cheryl takes the bucket and hands it back down to Kevin. ''Yeah, Kev, How about a refill? Cherry cola, as always.''

He takes the bucket and jumps out of the truck.

Veronica scoots down, allowing room for herself and the two girls with her.

While she was focused else where, Hazel turns to Cheryl and nearly hesitates to ask, ''It's probably none of my business, but who's Jason?''

The red head bites off a piece of her licorice. ''No need to fret. My brother's death has been pretty much everyone's business.''

She jerks back. ''Brother?''

''Twin brother,'' She corrects.

''I'll be right back,'' Veronica vaguely excuses herself before dashing off.

''That,'' Hazel stammers, practically forgetting about Veronica's whereabouts as she responds with sympathy, ''That must be horrible. I'm sorry.''

She scoffs, looking back at the movie. ''You didn't even know him, so why are you apologizing?''

''Because, it-''

''It's what's right?'' She cocks a brow. ''I'm assuming that's what you were going to say, correct?''

In her head, that was exactly what she was going to say. But she wanted to prove her wrong, she didn't like being counterfeit as predictable when Hazel Michael was far from it.

''I was going to say,'' She starts off again. ''Because it would kill me if my brother died. After knowing them for so long, it'd be too hard to let go.''

Cheryl's tense shoulders deflated.

''Can I ask, how did it happen?'' She cringed. This was completely over her boundaries, she was so sure the intimidating strawberry blonde didn't even remember her name.

''The story will unfold,'' She turns to face her with pursed lips. ''You'll find out the truth, along with the rest of us.''