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Jughead silently slipped into the pristine hospital room, the florescent light near the door flickering ever-so-slightly as he made his way past the carts of medical equipment and cleaning supplies sitting near the door.
“I had a feeling you’d be stopping by,” Alice Cooper called to him from the hospital bed, her head slowly turning to watch him step into the room out of the corner of her eye.
“I would have come sooner, but I wasn’t entirely sure if you wanted to see me,” Jughead admitted, taking in her brittle frame and sunken-in cheeks as he made his way over to the bed.
“But you came anyway,” Alice stated, her chin twitching up slightly as she raised her eyebrows at him - the signature Cooper way of daring anyone to argue with her.
“I guess I had to take a leap of faith,” Jughead admitted, shoving his hands in his jacket pocket as he took a step closer to her.
“Fair enough,” Alice muttered, her gaze drawing away from him and finding its way to a nearby chair on the other side of the room. “Since you’re here, you might as well take a seat. It’s not like I’m going anywhere anytime soon.”
Jughead did as he was instructed, pulling the chair closer to the bed and lowering himself onto its uncomfortable-looking cushion.
“So Mr. Jones,” Alice began, using every bit of strength she had left to lift herself into a sitting position. “How’s my daughter?”
“She wanted to come see you,” Jughead told her, his gaze dropping to the tiled floor. “But I think she’s afraid. You know, after the way you guys left things, I think she’s convinced herself that you never wanted to see her again.”
“That’s absolutely ridiculous, she’s my daughter for christ’s sake,” Alice spat. “Did she tell you about our fight? What drove her to launch the vase at my head and storm out of the house like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum?”
“She didn’t go into detail,” Jughead explained, shifting uncomfortably in his seat as he leaned forward to speak much more quietly. “But I’m a reporter, Mrs. Cooper - I know how to fill in the blanks.”
“Then it’s even more surprising that you’re here now,” Alice admitted, her weak hand shaking as she reached for the glass of water on the tray near her bed. Jughead saw her struggle and quickly lifted it from the tray and handed it to her, bending the straw down to her level for easier access. “If you know that you’re the cause of ripping apart a mother and daughter, what could you possibly be doing at that same mother’s deathbed?”
“I came to see you today because I knew that Betty couldn’t,” Jughead explained, setting the cup back on the tray before settling back into his seat. Having not been the answer she was expecting, Alice’s head shot up to stare at Jughead with wide eyes. “And believe it or not, Mrs. Cooper, that’s more important to me than feeling liked or welcomed by you.”
“Well, well, Jughead Jones has a little more spunk in him than I thought,” Alice muttered to herself. “I respect that.”
Alice crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes never leaving Jughead’s gaze.
“Now tell me why you’re really here,” Alice instructed, and Jughead’s heart skipped a beat as he feigned innocence at her accusation of ulterior motives.
“I’m sorry, I’m not sure what you’re-”
“Please,” Alice scoffed. “I might be a little out of practice with my reporting skills, Mr. Jones, but I spend enough time watching people nowadays to notice that you’ve been fiddling with something in your coat pocket since you stepped into this hospital room. And I also know enough about your relationship with my daughter to realize that you’ve been dating for over seven years now. And in knowing both of these things, and the fact that you cared enough about Betty to set aside your personal feelings for me, and show up here today - anyone could come to the conclusion that you were here to ask me something.”
Jughead turned his head away, rubbing his hands up and down his arm uncomfortably as he tried to steady the rhythm of his heartbeat.
“So ask me,” Alice prompted, her voice softening the slightest bit as she nudged her elbow into his arm resting comfortably beside her on the bed.
“I’m in love with her, Mrs. Cooper,” Jughead said in a small voice. “I have been since we were kids. And I want to spend the rest of my life with her, but I know her - and I know that she will never agree to marry me unless you gave us your blessing.”
“You know, when Elizabeth was in high school and everything was happening with her sister, I would notice that she could go weeks without smiling or laughing whenever she was at home. It was like she was stuck in this funk where she only saw in black and white,” Alice began, her fingers fiddling with a fraying piece of fabric on the blanket covering her legs. “Until she started dating you and her whole world seemed to be flooded with color. She was always the happiest whenever you were in her life.”
“So, you’re saying…” Jughead urged her to continue, his heart pounding wildly in his chest.
“What I’m saying is that despite everything that’s happened, I’ve always secretly admired you, Mr. Jones. And I’ve always been grateful for the way you’ve treated my daughter,” Alice admitted quietly, her words sounding more sincere than Jughead had ever thought possible. “So with that being said - you may have my blessing to marry my daughter.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Cooper,” Jughead pushed back from his chair, the wooden legs making a terrible squeaking noise on the tiled floor as he stood. “You have no idea what this means to us.”
“Just promise me this,” Alice instructed, placing her hand on his arm and lifting her chin to meet his gaze. “Do it soon. Life’s too short to waste any meaningful moments.”
“I will,” Jughead promised. “And I’ll tell her that you want to see her. She’s going to be so happy.”
“Jughead,” Alice called to him as he turned to leave the hospital room. “Never stop filling her life with color - I was never able to do that for her, but I have no doubt in my mind that you will.”
With one quick nod, Jughead turned to leave the hospital room, the ring box still sitting in his jacket pocket. Alice smiled to herself as she watched him leave, hoping with everything she had left, that she would still be around to see their wedding day.