𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑
COMFORT FROM A MOTHER
; ♡⋆.ೃ࿔*

(extremely late and I am sorry)

There was a sound of scuffling in the late hours of the night. One that Gladys Jones had been able to hear as she had a smoke. Jellybean had gone to bed along with the rest of the kids she had taken under her roof and helped have her gut vehicles for parts to sell.

But that sound of scuffling had been coming from the front gate. In her time of living here, not once had she encountered someone at this late of an hour. There were the occasional coyotes or wolves that passed through, but a person was a different story.

So, as she approached the gate, she could see the silhouette of a limping figure approaching chain-linked gate. The moon did very little to reveal who the person was. But she could tell they were injured by the hand pressed to their side and the mangled leg they dragged behind them. Their was hair dishevelled and the foul smell of mud and dirt invaded her nose.

"Can I help you?" She called out, slowly approaching the gate with caution. Gun in the back of her pants in case she needed to quickly draw on the person.

But as the person met the fence, she stopped. The rattling filled the air as a harsh breath fell from the person's lips, they were laboured. Still overly cautious and protective of the business she now possibly had to defend. It only took one word though to wash her worries away.

"Mom."

It was close to a whimper. But that low gravely tone couldn't be mistaken for anyone else. So when she got closer, her eyes grew wide and her hand covered her mouth momentarily. Seeing Chris, face cut and bruised as his eyes fought to stay open. His right leg was torn to shreds and no sign of a fatal wound on his side, likely to be from bruising.

"Jesus. CJ?" She quickly unlocked the gate and pulled it open. Taking her eldest son's arm and shrugging it over her shoulder. "What the hell happened to you, sweetheart?"

"Long story." That was all he told her as she got him towards the centre of the camp where a fire still burned. Dropping him onto a dusty old couch as she rushed off to grab medical supplies to treat his wounds.

Returning, she found him to still be awake, eyes battling to stay open. She carefully cut the pant leg and revealed his leg to be bitten into. From the way the wounds seemed to be larger than usual, she expected there had been more of a tug of war for the boy.

"Wolf do this to you?" She asked, glancing up at her son who hummed.

"Crashed my bike. Came out of nowhere. Barely got out of there." His answers were in sharp breaths as he tried to endure the burning sensation of peroxide being poured over the holes in his legs.

"Well, it doesn't seem like it would be any massive damaged. Going to need to stitch this up though." She looked up at him, finding his eyes to be clamped shut as he groaned in pain. "Can you keep your eyes open for that?"

"Get me a bottle of liquor and I'll be alright."

After having done that and patching up her son's leg, Gladys had tended to anything else he might need help with. Got food into him and some water as the boy sat quietly. She watched the entire time with a cold beer in her hand. Scanning each new feature she found on him

He was older now. Far more mature looking at least. He was blind in one eye and when she had inspected the bruising on his side, she had seen the multitude of scars. Not to mention the one across the side of his head that she wasn't even sure she wanted the backstory to. Already expecting one person to be responsible for it. Connecting Jughead calls for the both him and Chris to live with her now because of FP.

She did regret not letting either of them come live with her. Maybe if she would've known what was happening back in Riverdale, perhaps she would've done something. Possibly beat FP to death by laying his hands on her two boys. Or maybe just stolen them to come back with her. But she guessed she was just afraid of bringing them into her new way of life. Barely getting by with how much money she could get for parts and getting paid by being a personal loan shark. Gladys isn't sure what she would've done at this point.

"What brought you out here?" Gladys finally asked.

Chris' movements slightly faltered with his fork, glancing up at her for a moment before back down at his food. But just the thought of it put a sour taste in his mouth as he placed his plate down beside him. Leaning back into the cushioning of the couch with a hiss as he stared intently at the flame.

Remembering his vision, he felt that continuous sting in the back of his eyes. Lips pursing as he breathed through his nose shakily. Parting his lips, tongue clicking to the rough of his mouth as he chuckled, shaking his head with a heavy breath slipping out.

"I, uh, I killed him," he confessed quietly. "I killed Jason."

Gladys knew of this, of course, as Chris had disappeared after being proven to be guilty just by evidence. But hearing it come from his lips. The pain in his words and the guilt that engulfed his voice hurt her. Each movement he made, almost like he was trying to shake off the feeling only made it harder for her to watch.

"I don't remember doing it." His shoulder raised with a laugh, hands turned outwards as he stumbled over his words. "I-I feel like if I've killed someone, I would remember it, right? I mean, he was my best friend, but I don't remember it. But I can't. I just can't. He never hurt me or did anything wrong, so I just - I just don't know why I would hurt him!"

A sob racked his body as Gladys quickly placed her beer down and slid into the open space beside him.  Bringing his head to her chest as he hugged her back. Letting out all the pent-up emotions seep through the cracks of his hardened exterior. It looked like he had been through war, but he was still as sensitive as he was when he was just a kid.

She remembers all the times when he messed up on a test and came home crying. Worried that she or FP would look at him as a disappointment. Unable to meet the same expectations as the other kids at Northside High. It had been a burden he'd carried with him no matter how many soft words either she or FP told him.

But this wasn't something that would help a few soft words wash away. It wasn't that simple when he killed someone for whatever reason he didn't know. That unsuspecting connection to someone he loved and cared for - would die for - and now he had to carry the blame for something he didn't know he contributed to. He mourned him. He did things in his rageful mind that he contributed to Jason even when he knew the Blossom would wish something more for him.

That was all over now. All he had left was his scars that tell the story of the continuous nightmare he would continue to live until his death. And maybe then, maybe he might just be able to make up for his wrongdoings with Jason.