Mariah sat a the breakfast table, eating the waffles that her mother had made. It was one of the rare occasions that the eldest Coleman actually made her food.

Amara sat in front of her daughter, watching her carefully as she ate. "How are they? The waffles," She asked the blonde. "They're good," Mariah answered. Amara nodded and the two went back to eating in silence. "How are you?" Ms. Coleman asked after a few minutes. "I'm fine, mom. Why?" Mariah said.

"It's just with everything going on, I thought maybe you wouldn't be," Amara answered. "Everything going on?" Mariah asked. "You know, with what happened to Fred. And your father showing up out of nowhere," the woman said. "My what? What father? I don't have one of those," Mariah muttered.

"Come on Mar, be serious," Amara said. "I am being serious, mom. Fathers wouldn't do what that man did. Patrick Coleman is not my father. Nor is he worth my time. And he shouldn't be worth yours," Mariah stated. At this point she lost her appetite.

She pushed her chair backward and stood. Picking up her unfinished plate of waffles, she walked over to the trashcan and threw the remainder of them away. "I'm gonna go to school. Have fun at work," Mariah muttered as she walked toward the stairs. "That's a waste of food!" Amara called after the girl's retreating form.

····

The blonde sat in between Veronica and Archie at one of the outside tables. Jughead was informing the group about something but Mariah wasn't listening. She was too deep in thought. She kept thinking about the conversation she had with her mom. And also about Patrick.

She was absolutely livid that he was back. She couldn't believe that he had the nerve to show up out of the blue, wanting back in her life. It was such bullshit. Mariah knew that he had some kind of ulterior motive for being in Riverdale. There is no way in hell that he was there for her or her mom. He was there for him.

A nudge to her side brought her attention back to the group. They were all staring at her expectantly. "I'm sorry, what?" She asked. "I asked you if you were in," Betty said. "In what?" Mariah questioned. "Are you gonna help us save Pop's?" Betty answered.

"What's wrong with Pop's?" The blonde asked next. "Did you really miss the entire conversation?" Jughead asked, an amused expression on his face. "You know I did," Mariah muttered. "All right, what's up with you?" Veronica asked. "Nothing's up," Mariah denied.

"Really? Because you're in la la land. And whenever you're there, it means you're thinking about something important," Veronica said. "No, it usually means that I'm bored and tuning out the conversation," Mariah said. Veronica narrowed her eyes, "I know you and I can tell when something's up. So spill."

"I don't know what you're talking about but nothing's up. There's nothing to spill. And of there was, you would know," Mariah insisted. Her friends all looked at each other. "Look, I gotta go find Cheryl. I'll help save Pop's or whatever. See you guys later," the blonde said.

She stood from the table and walked away from the group.

····

Mariah's mind had been on Patrick all day long. She couldn't seem to forget that he was back, no matter how hard she tried. She had wished it was a dream but unfortunately for her, it wasn't. She was reminded of that fact later on that day.

She had gone to the grocery store to pick up a few things for the house. Cheryl, who insisted on going with the girl so that she wasn't alone, tagged along. The two were walking down the frozen food aisle in search of ice cream when they heard Mariah's name being called. The blonde looked up, spotting the man a few feet in front of her.

He took a reluctant step forward as she stared at him in shock. There was a woman behind him, whom Mariah didn't register until she too began taking steps forward and closer to where Mariah and Cheryl stood. "Are you following me or something?" Mariah snapped, taking a step back and pulling the shopping cart with her.

"N-no, we were just, grocery shopping," Patrick replied. He took in her appearance and she shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. "You've really grown so much," he mumbled. "What did you expect, me to be twelve years old forever?" She replied back, her tone anything but nice. "I know that I'm probably the last person you want to see right now but—"

"Probably? You're most definitely the last person she wants to see," Cheryl stepped in, walking forward. Patrick smiled slightly, "Hello, Cheryl. It's good to see you again." Cheryl scoffed, "I'd say it's good to see you too but that would be the biggest lie that I would've ever told."

"You haven't changed much," he noted. "You sure have. Lookin' a little old and gray there, Patrick," Cheryl replied, not missing a beat. Mariah cracked a smile before her eyes drifted to the woman stood behind Patrick. "Is there a reason you're standing there? Do you need something?" She asked, eyeing the woman.

"No, I- uh, I'm Kelsey. Your, uh, your. Your father's my husband and I—" Mariah yanked on the cart, turning it around and quickly waking back the way that she had come. Cheryl was quick on her tail, heels clicking as she scrambled behind her. "What about the ice cream?" The redhead questioned. "I don't want it anymore," Mariah practically snarled. "Well you certainly need it," Cheryl muttered.

Mariah pushed the shopping cart away from her, allowing to roll down a different aisle and started for the exit. "I guess we're not getting anything then," Cheryl said to herself before running after the blonde. "Mariah! Slow down! It's not easy to run in heels!" The redhead called after her friend.

"You never had trouble doing it before," Mariah replied as she slowed down. "Yeah well, I am today," Cheryl responded before sighing. "Are you okay?" She asked. "Sure Cheryl. I'm great. Absolutely fucking perfect." Mariah yanked her car keys out of her bag. "Sorry I asked," Cheryl muttered before snatching the keys from Mariah's hands.

Mariah turned to glare at her friend. "Give me my keys," she commanded, holding out her hand. "No. You're upset and you shouldn't drive when you're upset and I don't want to die today so I'll drive," Cheryl said. "Then how're you gonna get home?" Mariah asked. "I'll just spend the night at your place," Cheryl said. Mariah glares at her for a moment. "Whatever," she muttered.

Cheryl unlocked the car and Mariah slid into the passenger seat.

····

When the two arrived back at the Coleman household, they were met by Amara who sat in the kitchen with Archie. Mariah sighed as she set her bag down on the couch.

"Where's the food?" Amara questioned. "At the store," Mariah replied, walking to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. "And why is the food not in this house?" Amara asked next. Mariah hesitated, looking at Archie who was silently looking up at her. "Because you know who was there and, I had to leave," the blonde said. Amara looked to Cheryl who was looking at Mariah in confusion.

"You know who? Why are you saying you know who?" The redhead asked. Mariah narrowed her eyes at the girl. "Who's you know who?" Archie questioned, speaking for the first time. "Oh, lover boy doesn't know," Cheryl realized. "Shut up, Cheryl," Mariah snapped. "Know what?" Archie asked.

Mariah looked at him before looking at her mom who shrugged. The blonde sighed, grabbing Archie's hand and pulling him toward the stairs. The two ascended the stairs and went to her room. They entered and Mariah closed the door behind them. Archie sat down on the bed and Mariah began pacing in front of him.

Archie watched her for a few moments. "Is this about the thing that was bothering you at lunch?" He asked. She closed her eyes briefly and sighed. "My father's back. In Riverdale. He's back and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since he showed up at my doorstep. How he knew where we lived, I have no idea but I do have a guess," she took a deep breath.

Mariah stopped in front of him, a frown on her face. "I can't believe this is happening," she mumbled, running a hand down her face. Archie took one of her hands and pulled her down next to him. "It's gonna be ok, Mar. We're gonna figure this out, okay? You don't have to do this alone," he said.

She nodded her head, "I know I don't. But I don't want to burden you with my stupid family drama. You have enough on your plate right now." Archie shook his head, "You're no burden, Mariah." She smiled at him. "You're sweet, Archie. But seriously, I can handle this on my own. It's a, it's a family matter."

"Now, what kind of boyfriend would I be if I let you deal with this by yourself?" He asked. "I'm here for you, whatever you need," he continued. Mariah's smile widened and she leaned into him, placing a kiss on his lips. She pulled away, the smile remaining on her face. Archie kissed her again, this one longer than the first.

The kiss became more heated, the two falling backward into the bed. Archie was on top of her now, his hands sliding down her side. He tugged on the hem of her shirt before going to pull it off. Mariah broke the kiss, pushing the boy away from her slightly. "Whoa," she said.

She looked up at him as he was now standing. Mariah couldn't quite make out the look on his face. Anger? Disappointment? Embarrassment? Maybe all three. Maybe something else. "Archie, I told you that I'm not ready for that, yet," she said. "Well, when are you gonna be ready?" He asked. She stared up at him in confusion. "I don't know. What I do know is that I'm not ready now," she answered.

"It doesn't seem like you'll ever be ready to me," he said and she scoffed, sitting up on the bed. "It's not my fault that you can't keep your raging hormones in check and you're struggling to keep it in your pants. I'm not some object that you can have whenever you want. I want my first time to be special and meaningful and when I'm older and mature. I don't want to be one of those girls who's pressured into having sex and then regret it after," she said.

"No one's pressuring you," he countered. "Really? Because I'm feeling pretty pressured right now," she retorted. Archie sighed, "That, wasn't my intention. I didn't mean to make you feel that way I just..." She bit her lip and looked down. "I'm, I'm just gonna go," he muttered after a brief moment of silence. She nodded her head and watched him exit the room. A loud groan left her lips and she fell backwards on her bed, running her hands down her face.

A knock sounded on her door and she looked up, spotting her mother and Cheryl in the doorway. "Cheryl told me about what happened at the grocery store. About Kelsey," Amara said as she made her way over to Mariah, who was sitting up. "Do you know her?" Mariah asked. Amara and Cheryl sat on either side of her and the older woman sighed.

"Not really. I didn't know who she was until I learned that he was having an affair. With her," Amara admitted. "She's the woman dad cheated on you with?" Mariah asked and Amara nodded. "He always has a thing for young brunettes I suppose," the woman tried to joke. Mariah pulled her into a side hug.

"If you want, I could beat her up," Cheryl said. Amara pulled away and looked at her. "Or maybe I could ask Jughead to get some Serpents to make Patrick 'disappear'," Mariah added. "No, to both. I'm fine," Amara said. "I'm not, so you definitely aren't," Mariah said. "I will be. And so will you," the eldest Coleman said.

Mariah sighed and laid backward onto her bed. Amara followed in suit and so did Cheryl. The three just laid there, looking up at the ceiling. "We still need food," Amara said.