Ghoulies and Serpents

Chapter Three - Flower Boy

"The serpents aren't the bad guys here Chai. They aren't. We're all victims of the same circumstance. We're all doing the filthy work of the Northsiders, can't you see they are just trying to survive just as we are." Delilah looked at her older sibling dead in the eye, begging him to attempt to see what it was that the Northsiders were doing.
"Don't you compare them to us, they are filthy poisonous pests."
"Let me out the car Malachai. I can't have this conversation with you anymore." Sighing heavily, Delilah felt as if she was flogging an already dead horse. Her brother was already so jaded that there was no changing his mind.
"Tyler told me that you were easy to influence, and now I believe her."
"I know you two have been fucking like rabbits. Tyler does know that you're just using her for sex right?" Delilah had successfully managed to talk her brother down and yet again managed to rile him up again single-handedly. Throwing the car door open nearly hitting a passing car, Malachai stalked around the front of the hot rod before forcing open the passenger door compelling Delilah to recoil away.

Catching hold of Delilah by the wrist, Malachai pulled her from the car propelling her into the tall grass by the side of the road.
"You want to lay in the grass with snakes you'll feel right at home down there." having no time to respond Delilah watched as Malachai was already back in his hot rod speeding off into the baking hot summer sun.
"Fuck" letting out a prolonged and frustrated scream, Delilah picked herself up and out of the long willowy grass. Standing tall she surveyed the nearby landscape before plucked out her cell phone which led to another yelled expletive as Delilah discovered there was no reception. Gazing up, Delilah could make out a road sign.
"Riverdale 7 1/2 miles, that's not so bad right?" Residing to the fact that it only her only viable option, Delilah removed her heavy leather jacket carrying it loosely in her left hand as she started en route back to Riverdale

Thirty minutes and just over two miles later, Delilah was reminded as too why it wasn't such a good idea to walk. The state had been experiencing an unseasonably hot summer with record-breaking heat waves, Despite the whether Delilah carried on regardless another road sign came into view.
"Riverdale 10 miles? wait have I been walking the wrong way this entire time?" Delilah, in truth, hadn't been walking in the wrong direction, but the heat of the sun was compelling her mind to play tricks on her.
"Pops stop the car, there's a girl out there in the middle of the road."

Waking up to what seemed like approximately an infinity of wires and neverending beeps, Delilah's eyes fluttered open observing what was happening close to her. Quickly able to understand and see that she was a current patient at Riverdale General Hospital. Looking over to her left Delilah could make her brother arranged at a graceless angle in a chair by her bedside.
"Malachai." Her throat dry and her voice raspy as Delilah exerted herself to get her brothers attention. She felt around the bed in hopes of finding something to catapult at Malachai to wake him from his seemingly peaceful slumber.

A young bleached blonde haired nurse walked in stating the undeniably obvious "You're awake?" Delilah gave the nurse a vacant stare, thinking 'No, of course, I'm not awake I'm just moving around with my eyes open because I'm still out cold.'
"Why am I here?" Croaking Delilah asked the clueless nurse as she handed her a glass of water.
"You don't remember? Heat exhaustion, you should be out in a couple of days. Your brother has been here with you pretty much the whole time, Doctor Masters practically had to wrestle him out to get him to go home. Oh, a boy stopped by too bought you flowers, he's a keeper."
"Sweet Pea." Whispering Delilah smiled weakly as she sipped on the tepid water.

"Lilah?" A barely awake Malachai stretched as he stood before walking to be by his sister's bedside.
"Chai? What Happened?" Asking in a daze Delilah looked up at her older brother, she couldn't recall what had happened for her to end up in hospital.
"Took you to that art supply shop store in Centreville told you I would be a couple of hours, you must have got bored of waiting and started walking, Nancy called me when you got brought in." The lie rolled easily off Malachi's tongue, he felt guilty for what he had done and just hoped that it wouldn't come back to bite him in the ass.

"Wow, I'm that much of an idiot to think I could walk from Centreville to Riverdale when it's hotter than hell outside?" From how much Malachai had said, Delilah deduced that he was lying. Malachai wasn't a talker, he was more of a doer, sighing heavily Delilah found her lack of memory frustrating.
"Go home Chai, I need clothes and Mr Tinkles, and more importantly you need to shower, you look like you need one." Feigning a yawn, Delilah gave Malachai the all clear to leave her unattended. Laughing Malachai nodded, grabbing his jacket and withdrawing from the room satisfied that Delilah was well taken care of.

"Did, I have a cellphone with me when I came in?" Looking over to the nurse who stood to observe the numerous monitors around the room.
"Yep...hold on I'll just get it for you." The nurse whose name Delilah learned was Clara passed her a now cracked cellphone from a locker on the other side of the room, where Delilah could see her leather jacket had also been stuffed in. Whoever had stuffed the jacket into the locker hadn't realised the importance and significance of the garment.
"Can you grab my jacket too...please." Occasionally Delilah forgot her manners when requesting things from others.
"Are you cold sweetie?" Clara seemed concerned as she glanced over her shoulder as she headed back towards the locker.
"No, just can't stand seeing my jacket stuffed in a locker like that." Sighing Delilah looked through her cell phone as it miraculously still held some charge, they were mostly just well wishes from other Ghoulies.

Biting her on her lip nervously Delilah found the person she wanted to message and typed out a quick message without thinking.
D: thanks for my flowers X
"Shit" Delilah probably shouldn't have messaged him at all considering how high she was from a cocktail of various drugs. The kiss she had tagged on to the end of the message before she sent it in hindsight was a mistake. Delilah wondered briefly whether it made her look desperate. It was too late to worry now what's done was done she thought as she drifted back to sleep.

"Miss Maken?" A knock on the door to her hospital room Delilah woke, sitting up bleary-eyed as she looked over to see Carla, the nurse who had become her regular caregiver.
"You have a visitor, thought I would see if you're up for it." Carla kept her body close to the door, Delilah guessed whoever the visitor was stood close to the nurse.
"Depends who the visitor is and if they've brought me fries from the Chocklit Shoppe...so who is the elusive visitor?" Delilah always revelled in the times where she could be dramatic.
"Flower boy," Clara spoke as a smile tugged at the corners of her lips as if she was plotting on letting the said boy in any way.
"Always yes." Delilah nodded far too enthusiastically as Clara pulled her head from around the door pushing it open to reveal a very tall handsome southside serpent
"Ah oh to be young and in love." Clara ducked out before either of the teenagers could say anything, Delilah nearly choking on air as she heard 'young love.'

"So your not dead yet?" Sweet Pea's face held a relieved look when he saw that Delilah was indeed still alive and kicking.
"I'm too scrappy to die, besides who would you fight at school?" Delilah wondered if Sweet Pea or anyone, in fact, would actually miss her if she were to wither away and die.
"Everyone." Truthfully Sweet Pea would fight a hole in the wall given half a chance, Laughing Delilah motioned for him to sit.
"Thanks for the flowers by the way there beautiful." No one had given Delilah any gifts before let alone flowers, she always felt awkward when someone did get her a gift because she never really knew what to say
"I was gonna say something cheesy, but that would be embarrassing." Laughing Delilah gazed over as Sweet Pea sank into the waiting chair. He looked exhausted, she wondered what it was that he'd been doing that had him losing sleep.
"You're seeing me in a hospital gown what more could you say to possibly say to embarrass anyone any further." A pointed look crept up onto Delilah's face as she looked him dead in the eyes.
"That's a hospital gown, I thought it was the latest fashion, straight off the runways in Paris." Sweet Pea spoke in jest surprising Delilah who was used to only ever seeing his rough and ready side, but he was making an active effort to make her feel better.

"If you were closer I swear I would slap you upside the head."A cunning smile replaced her earlier death glare as Delilah felt the numerous butterflies in her stomach flutter around. She wanted to roll her at how cliche that sounded in her head.
"I like to save the slapping and biting for the bedroom." Smirking sweet pea looked Delilah dead in the eye watching as she turned beet red. Delilah had already heard about his various sexual exploits through the grapevine or Southside High school.
"I...oh shut up." Delilah buried her face into her knees attempting to hide from sweet pea. Standing, Sweet Pea strode over and sat on the bed Infront of her tilting her head up.
"Don't hide from me." Now Delilah had no choice but to look into the dark, mysterious eyes of the person in front of her.
"I hide from everyone." Admitting the truth was hard to do for Delilah, but it felt as if a weight had been lifted off of her young shoulders.
"Shouldn't with a pretty face like that." Sweet Oea's personality was magnetic with it seeming to pull everything towards him including Delilah who lent in to kiss the southside serpent feverishly.

A desperate low knocking on the hospital room door caught the attention of the teenagers who reluctantly parted ways wondering what was going on.
"Flower boy. you better leave, the ghoulies are here and their baying for your blood." Clara gave a fleeting look as she popped her head around the door.
"Gonna have to make a quick exit princess." A chaste kiss placed gently on Delilah's lips just before sweet pea slipped out the door and made for his escape shortly after a group of Ghoulies headed by Malachai. Who had barged in expecting to see the serpent they were searching for.
"Uh...hi guys?" Delilah quickly able to compose herself shot a pointed look at the flustered Ghoulies
"Just came to see how our little princess is doing, Malachai's been hiding you away from us, so we wanted to make sure that you were still alive." Tyler peeped her head around Malachai's body.

Malachai tossed a duffle bag in Delilah's direction who caught the bag with ease, opening it up she discovered some much welcomed clean clothes of course in her favourite colour black. Delilah was surprised to see her stuffed bear Mr Tinkles had been carefully wrapped in a T-shirt, smiling to herself Delilah opted to not to him out in front of all her friends.
"Tell you when you're coming home yet Li?" Tyler asked far too enthusiastically for Delilah's liking only rousing her suspicions.
"Miss me already huh? Delilah asked with a wiggle of her eyebrows, Tyler only scoffed in response.

The room door swung open as Doctor Masters, and Clara stepped through with a clipboard in hand, briefly looking it over before looking over Delilah
"Alright miss Maken, you're ready to be discharged, nothing really to tell you to do other than stay hydrated and don't go thinking about any long walks anytime soon." Doctor master was always so confident and friendly despite being a Northsider he never let that interfere with the work that he loved dearly.
"Thanks, Doc, just one question how long until I'm fighting fit?" Now smiling brightly Delilah sat up straighter to hear the doctors verdict.
"A couple of months to a year." Doctor Masters stated as a matter of fact as he glanced over his glasses towards his patient
"Shit that long? A shove to the ribs let Malachai know he shouldn't be swearing Infront of the doctor.
"Yes, Master Maken that long, don't go getting your sister into any unnecessary trouble you hear me?" Doctor Masters gave Malachai a pointed look who in return just shrugged his shoulders.

End of Chapter Three

Thanks to all those that have read/reviewed/followed etc I really appreciate it.

By the way for all people asking this fic starts off just before Jughead goes to Southside high so pretty much the beginning of season two