Toni didn't like the reputation that being a serpent held. Sure, she loved to scare or intimidate the occasional priveleged northsider but she hated what people thought they were. Scum. Unintelligent. Irresponsible. It went against everything Toni was.
Contrary to popular belief, the serpents were actually smart. They were quick on their feet. They had basic knowledge of how everything worked. Some of them lacked in areas of school subjects sure, but didn't everyone?
As Toni sat in class with her chin laying on her hand and elbow connecting to the desk, her mind wandered. The teacher had just given them a quick task to do but Toni's hyperactive mind had already done it. She absolutely loved learning. Toni's Riverdale High friends were pretty shocked that she had a high GPA and that she liked to learn new things. Toni wanted to scoff and roll her eyes at the fact that they thought so little of her only because she was from the Southside but Cheryl's grin always stopped her. The redhead loved to brag about how smart her girlfriend was, despite being an intelligent student herself.
'Most Intelligent Riverdale High Couple,' Veronica had given them the nickname of. Cheryl beamed at it which made Toni pretty cool with it. She didn't care for titles nor what anyone thought of her. She knew she was smart. She knew she loved education. No one's thoughts were ever going to change that. Cheryl's smile whenever it's brought up, however, made Toni extremely happy and she was going to make sure to keep their title.
She felt her hand being moved slightly as her thoughts drifted away and she came back to reality. Their teacher, Mr.Stinely, was seated at his desk with his phone in his hand, his eyes glancing up every few seconds to check on everyone. There was no doubt he knew Toni finished her work because it certainly wasn't the first time she had done it early. She felt her hand moving again and she looked to the right of her.
Cheryl Blossom sat with a bored expression on her face, one of her hands twirling around a pen in between her fingers. Her eyes were glued to the board in front of them which held a physics equation that Toni had already solved. Knowing her girlfriend, she would've already finished the problem as quickly as Toni did. The thought made her smile. Cheryl turned around slightly and returned it, blowing her a small kiss silently.
The hand that Toni felt moving was clasped in Cheryl's own, the redhead intertwining their fingers together. Toni's thumb started stroking the redhead's knuckles. It wasn't new to them to be affectionate in class. Cheryl even had their desks moved closer together just so they can hold hands and whisper random things into each other's ears. No one minded since they were always so quiet about it.
"I love you." Toni whispered into her ear as she leaned in. Everyone was focused on their worksheets except for Archie, who gave them a lazy smile from where he sat. His sheet was probably empty because he gave up on trying to solve it. Classic Archie Andrews.
Cheryl turned her head towards Toni fully, her nose scrunching with a radiant smile on her face. Toni could almost melt at the sight of her girlfriend's adorable appearance. She loved seeing Cheryl smile, especially when she was the cause of it.
"I love you too." She whispered back. Toni took the risk and leaned in more, her chair squeaking slightly. No one paid them any mind, however, much to her appreciation. She gave Cheryl a small peck on her lips, tasting the familiar flavor of Blossom syrup which was probably due to their breakfast of pancakes earlier. Toni couldn't stand the taste of maple syrup with her pancakes but Cheryl absolutely adored it and Toni adored tasting it from her girlfriend's lips.
Toni pulled back gently, a smile tugging at her lips as she leaned back into her seat, once again staring at the board lazily. She almost wanted to ditch this class and leave with Cheryl since their next period was cheerleading which they both came early to so they could have some time alone, which mostly reduced to making out under the bleachers or talking about their classes, but Toni restrained herself. She just had to sit in class for a bit longer, nothing new.
Suddenly, something cold touched her skin. Her immediate instinct was to recoil her hand away but a firm grip kept it in place. Toni's head snapped to the side, her eyes quickly softening once she realized what had happened. A small black line was etched onto her skin, right above her wrist on the dorsal side of her hand. Toni rolled her eyes at Cheryl's playful smirk as the redhead lowered her other hand that held the black-inked pen and placed the ballpoint tip onto the black line she had drawn. Toni hissed quietly at the coldness and attempted to remove her hand once again but Cheryl stuck her tongue out with a mischievous glint in her eyes and held it in place. Toni could only groan silently and keep her hand there as she stared into space at the quiet room.
A few more doodles were drawn on her hand and in time, Toni started to enjoy the feeling of Cheryl's soft fingers stroking the skin of her wrist and the pen touching her skin that gave her small goosebumps. It was relaxing and almost therapeutic. Toni turned her head once again to catch Cheryl, her eyes staring deep into her work on Toni's hand, tongue poking out of her teeth as her nose scrunched and the concentration on her face making Toni want to take a picture of her. She had seen Cheryl look like that before but it was always at her sketch book. Seeing her do it right now even when her art wasn't on paper made Toni sigh contently.
She really fucking loved seeing Cheryl smile, especially when she was the cause of it.
'enjoying urself?' Toni wrote on a small piece of paper and tossed it to Cheryl's desk. She looked up with a questioning brow raised and glanced at the note, reading it as quickly as she picked it up.
Cheryl laughed quietly and wrote something back quickly, placing it at Toni's desk respectfully. The pink haired girl sighed through her nose and flipped the note around.
'Love you too baby,'
Toni didn't complain after that.
Toni didn't even notice when the bell sounded and everyone started to get up until Cheryl nudged her slightly. She had been close to nodding off with Cheryl's silent hums and the soft motions on her skin lulling her to sleep. Cheryl placed a small kiss on her cheek before getting up from her seat, stretching slightly. Toni followed and grabbed Cheryl's small red bag before her girlfriend could, slinging it around her shoulder before grabbing her own.
She felt a playful slap to her shoulder, "TT, I can carry my own bag you know."
"I know."
As Cheryl and Toni left the classroom hand in hand, they headed towards the lounge to grab a quick snack before going to cheerleading practice. Cheryl dropped her hand before sauntering over to the vending machine.
Fangs appeared next to Toni, tapping her on the back lightly.
"'Sup, Fangs." Toni greeted him with a smile.
"Nothin' much." Came the reply. Toni raised an eyebrow at his excited demeanor.
"You sure?" Toni laughed lightly.
"Fuck it, Kevin asked me out." He replied, almost bouncing up and down ecstaticly.
"No way, man! That's awesome. Congrats." Toni beamed to her best friend. He had been crushing on the Keller since forever so she was really excited for him.
"Thanks, Tiny. Sick drawing, by the way." He left her side to join the said boy they were talking about. Toni wanted to go after him to chide him on the nickname but something else caught her attention.
Nice drawing?
Toni's eyes widened as she brought her forearm up to her face, twisting so the palm of her hand can face the floor and she could see what Cheryl had been drawing.
Toni's heart stopped beating.
It was a quick sketch of the two of them, Toni's hand around Cheryl's shoulders as they held each other tightly. It looked so life-like it was scary. Toni could see every small detail Cheryl had put in, including small freckles adorning her face and the birthmark that rested on her shoulder. They looked so in love in the photo, much imitating real life.
"I got you a chocolate bar." Cheryl came back to her side. Toni immediately pulled her in for a deep kiss, tangling her fingers in the copper hair she loved so much. Cheryl returned it just as eagerly, a small sigh escaping her.
"What was that for?" Cheryl asked when they pulled apart to catch their breaths.
"I just love you." Toni answered genuinely, locking their arms together.
"Your drawings are fantastic FYI." She added as they exited the lounge and headed towards the lockerroom.
Cheryl smirked with a hint of pride shining in her eyes, "I know."
"Should I get it tattooed?"
"My god, Toni. No."