bragnificent | OPEN POST.

So I need to borrow you Friday night.

( reggie mantle, douchetacular extraordinaire, is not sweet pea's ideal lab partner. not that they had much of a choice. that's high school for you, forced interaction with a whole load of kids who are very unlikely to ever get along. being from the southside doesn't make it any easier, but after all the bravado from jughead and show of support, it hasn't been as bad. doesn't mean reggie isn't still a mangy bulldog, but he might be less likely to bite now. that's good for both of them. they might get through this stupid project without killing each other. )

Hey. ( he catches reggie after school so they don't wind up in detention on top of everything else if a fight breaks out. they're both loose cannons. it's better to play it safe, espcially after the riots. ) We gonna have a problem? I'm not gonna bail you out of this project if you're not on board. ( because of me goes unsaid, but it's made pretty clear by the look in his eyes. )

[ he should have been home over an hour ago, but he lost track of time at the library. there was a campus wide alert on the incoming storm and, to say the least, jughead regrets not heeding the warning sooner. by the time he makes it back to the apartment, the weather has taken a severe turn for the worse and his only reprieve is the thought that he'll once again have a quiet, warm place all to himself.

reggie is probably holed up somewhere with one of his innumerous frat fuckbuddies, which means he won't have to see him until the blizzard passes.

......or not.

it looks like he made the novice mistake of having hope. he barely gets the door halfway open before he is immediately greeted by the sound of vague noises coming from further inside the room. mantle is home. ] Great. Just what I need. [ removing his outer coat, he hooks it onto the rack as he makes his way toward the living area. ]

What are y— [ annnd his voice cuts off because what he sees is almost as mortifying as what he hears. ] Reggie.

basically

[ Reggie's still not used to living in this apartment, or sleeping in this bed-- and he's especially not used to waking up in it with company. His head hurts a little, and for once not from a hangover, but rather spending most of the night awake and...

Well, awake. He'll leave it at that for now, because he's not sure how ready he is to recollect exactly what he spent the night doing and with whom yet that's left his body feeling this heavy and sore and weirdly, reluctantly satisfied. Maybe after coffee.

He turns slightly, looking over his shoulder at Jughead before elbowing him gently, voice still mostly slurred with exhaustion when he speaks: ]

Hey. Go make me some coffee.

Edited 2018-12-01 04:47 (UTC)

( the times when any of them get to be their actual age are few and far between. archie thinks he can count the occasions on his hands but he doubts he actually needs the second one. that is, if he could count. he’s sort of beyond that, here, right now with his head back against the wall and one leg bent at the knee, empty beer bottle in hand. he's sprawled entirely too close to reggie—not crowding him but not giving him much breathing room, either. as if he even has a concept of what someone else's personal space is supposed to look like because he's touchy-feely in general. the usual stuff: hands on shoulders, hugging, yanking someone in playfully in the crook of his elbow, touches on the small of a friend's back.

this isn't that.

their thighs aren't flush together but every time archie moves, they brush. maybe that's not anything in and of itself but accompanied with turning his upper half bodily towards reggie, it's something. the leg that's straightened out ( closest to reggie ) pulls in, both knees pointing closer as he leans towards him. he's not really putting much thought into what it looks like, more focused on what he's after. with the hand that's farthest from reggie, he reaches towards his lap where his hands are. where his beer is. cheeks warm, hair mussed from running his fingers through it, bottom lip a little red from worrying it between his teeth.

if reggie doesn't anchor him with a hand on his chest, shove him away, or stop him in some other manner, then he's pilfering the drink right out of his palms and putting his lips where reggie's had been a moment ago to help himself. )

Thanks. I needed that. ( it's true, regardless of whether he stops archie or lets him go. )

[There are two rules, when it comes to Reggie Mantle and everyone knows them. This is the a truth written practically in stone, from the time that Nick and Reggie met at their first tender class together. Two warlocks, one the alpha, and the other a true loyal follower.

The first rule is this: where Nick is, Reggie is not far behind.

The second is this: if Reggie is there, and Nick isn't, then you're fucked.

It's well established that Reggie is Nick's right hand, his confidant, his best friend. If Reggie knows something, then Nick knows it too - if Reggie discovers something, then Nick will find out. The opposite is also true, although people don't believe it. No one thinks that the loyalty runs both ways, which is their first mistake.

In any case, this is when rule one does not apply, and rule two just finished, which brings up the most important unspoken agreement between every witch at the Academy: when Nick is alone, and when Reggie is alone, when they come back together, that's, well.

Nick is sitting in one of the many clearings in the forest, a pile of books next to him, his legs dangling as he sits on a rock. He has an apple; he hears something, and tosses it.]

Are you mad I didn't go to Black Mass with you?

[Reggie was required for an extra Mass this week, practically gripped by the ear and forced, for some infraction or another. Usually it's only once a week, all the students sitting through the ritual.]

( from here )
[ As a rule Reggie is generally a tough person to rattle; easy to piss off, sure, but not make nervous, and though he isn't exactly nervous now, the anticipation and newness of it all makes him see it through slightly tense, "first-date" eyes.

Whenever he'd watch porn with a few of the other Bulldogs it had been very, well, nonchalant, as if it were just an extension of regular locker room horseplay, and Reggie was fine to roll with that. Like he'd said, it's not a big deal.

--And still isn't. He and Archie are friends, they're bros, and after everything else they've been through together, some fooling around isn't going to be what blows things up between them. It'll be fine.

Reggie's always kind of not-so-subtly wanted to mess around with Archie anyway, so, this might just work out, actually. He straightens up the worst of the clutter in his room to make plenty of room on the floor, bed, and most importantly in front of his TV, then once all that's done shoots Archie a quick thumbs up emoji text (👍🏽) to tell him to come over. ]

OPEN POST

sticks leggy out

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

you know which au

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➤ fᴏʀ ᴅɪɢᴇsᴛs ( ᴍᴏʀɴɪɴɢ ᴀfᴛᴇʀ; ᴀᴜ )

slides in here after sleeping on that other thread but also canonpoint flexible

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➤ for UNDECIDED