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Christmas had gone by quickly and was fairly uneventful. Mariah and her mother exchanged gifts, ate breakfast, watched TV, ate lunch, watched more TV, ate dinner, watched even more TV, and then went to bed.

Mariah had spoken to her friends, thanking them for the gifts they had gotten for her and them doing the same. Cheryl had stopped by to deliver Mariah's present and stayed for dinner. She and Mariah exchanged gifts and talked about random things so that neither of them had to focus on their messy lives.

Mariah was surprised that her father hadn't stopped by or called or anything of the sorts. It seemed like something he would do. She was grateful that he hadn't.

News of the Black Hood being shot dead by Sheriff Keller had quickly spread through the town like wildfire. The citizens of Riverdale could now feel at ease as there was no longer a threat. Mariah was relieved, no longer having to look over her shoulder and be extremely cautious if she ever went out at night. The town of Riverdale was safe once again. Well, safe enough.

After the whole ordeal, Riverdale had gone back to normal. Whatever that even meant anymore.

Now that Christmas was over, everyone was back in school. Mariah had been on a roll, waking up early to do her hair and makeup before school. She had River Vixen practice that morning but she would wear a maroon corduroy dress with a white, long sleeved top underneath. She also packed sheer black tights to wear underneath the dress as well, seeing as it was still a little cold outside, and black platform boots. Her hair was in its new signature style, half up half down.

Practice had flown by, with Cheryl behaving like a dictator per usual. Betty and Veronica weren't there and Mariah wasn't even sure if they were still on the team. Cheryl hadn't said anything regarding their absence so they were either no longer on the team or she just didn't care that they weren't there.

After practice was over, Mariah was in the girl's locker room along with the rest of the team. She was talking to Midge Klump, the darker haired girl telling her all about her Christmas. Mariah listened to her speak as she began changing into her clothes for the school day. None of the other girls were changing, too busy gossiping about who knows what. The locker room of girls quickly became silent as the loudspeaker came on then and Principal Weatherbee's voice came through it.

"Students of Riverdale High, this is your principal speaking. E-mails have been sent to your parents, but effective immediately, Southside High School is shut down." The girls around her began gasping and muttering quietly. Mariah showed no reaction and continued to listen on.

"And its students will be transferred to other schools in the district, including this one." At that, Mariah paled. Uh oh. This was bad. For her at least. That means she might have to confront the people she's been avoiding. And while she had no problem speaking to Sweet Pea or Fangs, she was absolutely terrified to actually have to have a conversation with Toni.

Mariah could barely even hear Principal Weatherbee clearly at this point, the girl's voices getting louder. "...Will address your concerns and theirs. You should be receiving it shortly. I'm sure you have many questions.
But it goes without saying, we are welcoming these students with open minds, hearts and arms."

Midge looked over at Cheryl in concern before walking over to her. "Cheryl?" She said. The redhead stood from the bench and whipped around to face Midge. "Hell no! My home life is a Dickensian nightmare. I won't have school turn into one, too," she said. She grabbed her bag and exited the locker room.

Mariah sighed, continuing to get dressed. Cheryl was overreacting just a little bit and Mariah wasn't feeling up to calming down the fiery redhead. Once she was done getting dressed, she grabbed her things and exited the locker room.

She walked through the halls of Riverdale High, stopping at her locker. She pulled out the things she'd need for her first class before walking toward it. Kevin was fast approaching her, already beginning to speak before he was even standing in front of her. "Did you hear?" He asked and she rolled her eyes.

"I think everyone heard, Kev," she replied. Kevin walked alongside her, quickly complimenting her outfit and hair, the color really starting to grow on him. Cheryl still hated it, though Mariah didn't see that changing anytime soon. He then began speaking about the topic at hand. "I can't believe the students from Southside High are coming here. Do you think the Serpents will be coming here?" He said.

"I hope not," she muttered. "Right, because the girl you like that you've been avoiding is a Serpent and there's a chance that she'll be coming here," Kevin realized. Mariah said nothing. "Have you spoken to her at all since it happened?" He questioned. "Nope," she replied. "Mariah," he chastised. "Sorry but, I'm a wimp, okay? And I don't know what to say to her and I've been sort of freaking out about the whole ordeal," she said.

"Well are you still confused though? Because I said 'the girl you like" and you didn't deny it," Kevin pointed out. "All I know is that I didn't dislike the kiss and-"

"And you wanna kiss her again," Kevin said, making kissy faces at her. Mariah shoved his shoulder, "Grow up." He laughed loudly at her. "Well, if she's coming here, you're gonna have to talk to her. You might see her in class and it'll be a little difficult to ignore her then," he said. "Difficult but not impossible," Mariah tried. "Mariah Coleman if you don't talk to this girl I will find her and lock you two in a room so that you have no choice but to talk," he threatened.

"That's evil," she said. "I'm just doing my part as a loving and caring friend." The bell rang and he smiled. "See you later," he said. Mariah began making her way to her first class. She spotted Archie and Veronica holding hands as they too were walking to class. For the first time, the sight of them together didn't make her want to throw up. In fact, it didn't make her feel any sort of way. Not angry, or sad, or jealous. She couldn't care less about what either of them decided to do or not do with their relationship. Growth. She thought it was growth. She smiled to herself.

She and Archie's eyes connected briefly and he sent her a small smile. She nodded her head and continued on her way to class.

After school, Mariah's mother had ambushed her with questions, asking if she knew what would be happening with the students of Southside High. After telling the woman that she had heard, Amara went on a tangent about the situation, going on and on about how dangerous people from the Southside were.

Mariah barely listened as she went on and on. She finally interrupted when she was sick of hearing her talk about this. "You know, Jughead's from the Southside. And I might like a girl from the Southside. If I wanted to pursue a relationship with her, would that be an issue?" She said. Amara paused and looked over at her. "Do you want to pursue a relationship with her?" Amara questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Maybe I do," Mariah said with a shrug. Yeah, maybe. "Look, I know not all Southsiders are bad but, a good majority of them are. And they were bringing drugs to that school. What if the same thing happens at Riverdale High? I don't want you turning into a crackhead," the woman said.

"A crackhead? Seriously mom? You think I'm gonna start doing drugs if kids from the Southside come to Riverdale High? Do you even hear yourself?" Mariah questioned. "And it's not like they'd be able to deal drugs here anyway. Riverdale High and Southside High are two completely different schools and Principal Weatherbee would never let that happen." At least, that's what she hoped.

Amara nodded her head. "I suppose you're right. Just don't go letting peer pressure get the best of you. If you become a crackhead, I'm kicking you out," she said. Mariah suppressed an eye roll, "Don't worry, I won't become a crackhead."

"You better not," Amara said seriously before turning away and beginning to cook.

••••

Mariah couldn't help the nerves that wracked her body as she entered Riverdale High the next day. In all honesty, she was being ridiculous. Any sort of backlash that could come from her ghosting escapade would be all on her. She knew that now that the Serpents would be coming to Riverdale High, a fact that Jughead had informed her about the night before, there was no way she could continue avoiding Toni. Or her feelings.

She went straight to her locker, ignoring everything around her. She sighed softly. Kevin was right, she needed to talk to Toni. She needed to clear the air and just explain everything. First she should apologize for avoiding her. Then explain why she did it but make sure that Toni knew that she knew that there was no excuse for doing it. She'd then have to be completely honest about how she felt. And hopefully, Toni wouldn't hate her forever.

Mariah nodded to herself. Yeah, that's what I'll do. Mariah closed her locker and began making her way to the student lounge. There was still time before first period started and she wasn't sure when Jughead and the rest of the Serpents would be getting there. There was still time. She still had time.

But as she made her way to the lounge, she spotted a fairly large group of people on one side of a table in the middle of the hall. Veronica and Archie were on the other side, the dark haired girl greeting the new students. They were already here. There was no time.

Mariah spotted Toni's pink hair from a distance, her heart leaping in her chest. "Stand down, Eva Peron!" A sharp voice called. And then Cheryl, Reggie, and some of the River Vixens and jocks descended the stairs, angrily walking over to where the Serpents stood. Mariah looked between the redhead and the group, none of them spotting her just yet. She used this to her advantage, grabbing the arm of a random boy and walking along with him.

She pretended to be in a deep conversation with him as they walked away from the scene. The boy was staring at her in confusion and once they were far enough away, Mariah sighed and released his arm. His eyes were wide as he looked at her and she smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I just, saw my ex boyfriend and was trying to avoid him," she said. It wasn't a complete lie. Archie was there. It just wasn't him she was trying to avoid.

The boy nodded his head in understanding and smiled. "I get it," he said and she smiled. "So, are you looking for a new boyfriend or?" Mariah made a face before patting his shoulder. "Thanks again," she said before walking away from him. He shrugged to himself, "Worth a shot."

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Long time no see. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. DO NOT COMMENT FOR ME TO UPDATE!