Disclaimer : I do not own Riverdale or its characters. They belong to Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and the CW. Only the story is mine. I will use some flashbacks or some references from the show, but I am not making any claim over the script. This story is an AU after the 4.17 and takes place four years later. That's basically what I would want to see happen. Katy Keene characters will make appearances later on the story too but there are not crossovers sections for Riverdale/Katy Keene yet, so I posted my story here. I do not own Katy Keene or its characters either. They belong to Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Michael Grassi and the CW. Only Johnny, Michael, Lana and Maria are mine. Do not steal or copy my work. Thank you !

First, I am a huge Varchie fan and a huge Bughead fan too. They are my OTP's. I like Barchie but to me, they are just meant to be/stay best friends. I hope you'll not get mad at me or anything. I'm not trying to start a shipwar or whatever. So please respect my opinion. I just want to write what I'd love to see happen for my favorite(s) ship(s).

I live in France, so I apologize in advance for any grammatical mistakes or anything. This is the second story I'm writing in English and I really hope you'll love it. I already posted it, but since there were not any comments, I deleted it because I thought nobody loved it. I know there were a few people who had my story in their favorite list, thank you guys. I hope you'll still read it, now that I've decided to give it another shot. But please leave a comment because I don't know anything about what you're feeling about my story. Enjoy and please comment, to let me know what you think. Thank you everyone !

Summary : This story is an AU after the 4.17. Veronica Lodge left Riverdale after graduation, without saying a word to anyone. Pregnant and heart broken, she kept it a secret and tried her best to leave this life behind. But what happens four years later, when her ex-boyfriend decides it is time to find her and win her back? The thing is you can always try, but you can't escape destiny. And Archie Andrews was her destiny from day one, even if he realized it too late.

You Can't Escape Destiny

Chapter One

There was a time when Veronica Lodge thought she had life all figured out. She would end up with her boyfriend, Archie Andrews, the love of her life. They'd get married, have kids (2 or 3, maybe). They'd get their happily ever after. No matter what life would throw at them, they'd get through it because this is Archie and Veronica we're talking about, right ? Like she told him once, they are endgame ... That's what she genuinely believed, anyway. Until she caught him and her best friend, Betty Cooper naked in the same bed at the bunker four years ago. She would never forget that day.

" What the ... ? "

They looked at her, completely shocked. Betty covered herself with the sheet while Archie grabbed his jean and immediately started to dress up.

" Ronnie, this isn't what ... " She immediately cut him off, with a hard voice

" This isn't what it looks like? "

She looked at Betty.

" How could you ? My best friend and ... " Archie tried to reach her but she pushed him away, putting her hands in front of her, like a shield. With tears in her eyes, she yelled at him.

" You said I was the only girl for you, now and forever. That was two weeks ago ! " He looked at her, looking like he was about to cry but she didn't care about his tears. He lied to her.

" I know. I know. Ronnie, please listen to me. Give me a chance to explain "

No. Veronica Lodge was strong, fierce, powerful. She would not be broken by some man, even if that man were the love of her life and even if she gave herself completely to him, mind, soul, body, heart. She would not give them this satisfaction.

"What's there to explain?! I think everything is clear. Don't you ever talk to me, both of you ! "

She should've known this ... or maybe she did. Why else would she be asking him if he did feel something for Betty when he had to play her boyfriend and kiss her two weeks ago? Because she felt it. She was so stupid. Their relationship was a lie ... He never loved her. Who knew since when this was going on behind her back ? Behind Jughead's back? With one last look to the pair, she left. She didn't have to stay one more minute in this fucking bunker with two fucking liars !

After that day, Veronica had only focused on school, work and then home. She had stopped going out with her friends and talking to them. She didn't need anyone else in her life. She still remembered watching the interviews of Kevin, Cheryl, and others when they were faking Jughead's death and hearing them say how Betty and Archie were meant to be since the beginning, how it wasn't surprising to anyone that they ended up together, now that Jughead's was gone, even if it fucking meant cheating on her ! Nobody had considered her feelings. Of course, at that time, it wasn't true. Still, it didn't ease the pain one bit when she saw the videos. And she was even more hurt later, thinking about it since it turned out true about Archie and Betty. So, she'd just stayed close to her family and that's it. Deep down, she was still deeply hurt by everything her father did to Archie to destroy their relationship, but he was still her father. A month before the graduation, she had discovered that she was pregnant ... With Archie's child, obviously. But she'd never told him. She got graduated and then, left Riverdale without looking back, without saying goodbye. Her parents had come with her to New York and supported her, through everything. Her father had really redeemed himself to her. When he'd found out the truth, he'd stopped all his shady activities, and focused on helping her during her pregnancy. When Liyah Valentina Lodge-Andrews was born, he had spent a lot of time with her. With her beautiful raven hair and brown eyes, she had him totally wrapped around her little fingers. He had loved her so much but sadly, he passed away two years after from his condition. A tear fell on her cheek. She never got over her father's death either. She looked at a picture of him with her daughter. He was smiling and holding her in his arms. She would always be grateful that he got to meet Liyah and spend time with her, getting to know her, even if it wasn't enough time.

" Mommy ? "

She put the picture back on her desk and looked at her beautiful daughter.

" Good morning Mija "

" I'm awake now and I'm hungry. Can we have pancakes ? "

The raven-haired beauty smiled softly at her daughter. She got up and picked her up in her arms, peppering her face with kisses. Liyah laughed softly.

" Mommy ! It tickles ! "

Veronica smiled to her daughter. Liyah was her baby, her princess. There were two things in life that almost destroyed her : Her breakup with Archie after he had cheated on her and the death of her father but when she looked at her beautiful child, her pain faded away. It still was hard sometimes because Liyah looked so much like her father. She had her raven hair, but she had Archie's eyes and his smile. So, when she looked at her, it was like looking at a mini version of her ex-boyfriend but she would never regret the choice of having her. Liyah Valentina was her life and she'd do anything for her.

" Let's go make pancakes, baby "

" Yeahhh ! Let's go Mommy ! "

?????

" So, how are things at the club ? "

" It's going pretty well, actually. The kids have made so many progresses, I'm so proud of them. They have found a shelter at the club, they feel safe now, have learned how to defend themselves, they stopped doing illegal activities and are now focusing on school. That's all I've ever wanted, for them to know that they have a place to feel safe, protected and to help them built a future for themselves. And we also have so many clients, who come to work out, a few boxings match here and there, you know. "

" That's great, Archie. I'm happy that it's working out for you. "

" Thank you, Betty. What about you ? How's working for the FBI ? " She smiled, looking proud to talk about the job she loved so much.

" Well, it's amazing and everything I could've hoped for. It's exhausting, but I love that job. It feels like it was meant for me from the very beginning. You remember how I always loved investigating and everything. " Archie laughed.

" How could I forget ? You and Jughead were inseparable, always investigating murders or mysteries. That's why I'm not even surprised about your job or about Jughead being a writer. He's always been talented. How is he by the way? Last time I talked to him, he was about to finish his new novel. "

" He finished it a few days ago. " She smiled, proud.

" How are you two doing ? "

" We are really happy, Archie. I can't believe I almost lost him all these years ago, I'm so lucky that he forgave me and gave me a second chance. He is the love of my life. " Archie smiled. Betty looked at him and squeezed his hand softly, on the table. " I'm so glad he gave you a second chance too. You two are brothers and I'd never forgive myself if what we did all these years ago would've ruined your relationship too. I'm just sorry that we never got a chance to make things right with Veronica too. What we did ... " Archie closed his eyes. He still had trouble talking about her, after all these years.

" It's okay. I just hope that wherever she is, she found her happiness. That's all she deserves. " He needed to get out of there, go to the club, workout to get off whatever it was that he was feeling now. " I'm happy for you, Betty. I should go to the club, I need to work out a little. But I'll talk to you and Jug soon okay ? "

He got up from the booth at Pop's and after a quick hug and a smile to the blonde, left. Seeing the young woman, hearing about Jughead and her made him so happy. Four years ago, Archie and Betty had both cheated on their loved one together and after that, had tried to date but it didn't even last a month because they had realized how wrong they were. That almost had cost them everything. For him, it still felt like it did. He was so relieved and lucky that Jughead, that he loved like his brother, forgave him. It took them years to build back their friendship and for Bughead too, to be happy again and to trust each other. But no matter how happy the red-haired man was, the truth still was the same. Ronnie was his everything. And when he had cheated on her with Betty, he had lost her. And he didn't get a chance to make it right with her. When it had all started, at their rehearsal for the musical, Betty and Archie were both upset, because they'd just had a fight with their partner and the song they were singing together just brought back some feelings that they had tried to forget. He had been so upset, at the time, thinking that it wasn't fair that Ronnie's dad would always be a sore subject for the two of them. Even when he was trying to do the right thing, it came back to bite him in the face. After everything that man did to him to destroy his life, to destroy his relationship with Ronnie, she was still on his side. And it had pissed him of. He didn't think clearly that night, started to remember when everything was simpler, when Betty used to love him. He was just a kid, back then, thinking that she was too good for him, and that they'd never work. And then, he had met Ronnie. When she had walked in, at Pop's, she had just taken his breath away. And he had wanted immediately to be with her. They both had fought against their attraction for each other because they didn't want to hurt Betty but then, she had started dating Jughead and even if he felt weird about it, he was still happy for them and he really wanted to be with Veronica. So, after talking with Betty, seeing that she was fine with it, Ronnie and Archie had decided to try dating. And since they were already good friends and had feelings for each other, dating had only made them stronger. They had fallen in love. Plain and simple. They completely had fallen in love with each other. But there was that kiss with Betty when they were both broken up and almost died, that they had never talked about but they probably should've because after that, they pretended like nothing happened and that never got them the closure they needed. The truth was, he had often wondered if they could have been something, if he didn't make a mistake by rejecting her and she wondered too if she ever had a chance with him, what would it be like? Would they be happy? Could he make her happier than Jughead? It was all "What If's", interrogations that they had and that's why when they pretended to be a couple, faking Jughead's death and everything, feelings had come back and at the rehearsal, they'd kissed. It didn't stop there because they really thought that they could have something real back then. They really thought it was love but it wasn't. Because even after Ronnie caught them and Jughead found out the truth, no matter how hard they were wrong, they thought if that happened, that was for a reason. People were telling them that it was meant to happen from the beginning, whatever. So, they had dated, and it didn't even last a month. Because even if they were enjoying each other, when they were seeing Ronnie or Jughead in the hallway, avoiding them, it only made them feel guilty. Because they had never deserved this, they had never understood their betrayal. He never forgot the look on Veronica's face when she caught them.

" You said I was the only girl for you, now and forever. That was two weeks ago ! " she had said to him that night.

And she was. She is. Dating the blonde made him realize that it was always Ronnie from the beginning and that it was guilt for rejecting Betty when she was so perfect and his best friend. He had thought that he could've made her happy. But the thing was Jughead had done everything for her, he had been making her happy and he was in love with her just like she was in love with him and Archie had destroyed their relationship and almost his with his brother because he'd always wondered what it would be like. It was not meant to be, it wasn't supposed to happen from the very beginning and that's just why it never happened. Ronnie had walked in at Pop's that night because she was meant to. It was fate, it was destiny. And he had ruined it. By letting go the love of his life and breaking her heart. If he could just know where she is, he'd go, find her and fight to get her back. Four years and his ex-girlfriend never once left his mind, his heart. He always knew Veronica was the one for him, he meant it all those times he said it to her but he got scared and had doubts and instead of talking about it with her, he messed up probably the best thing that ever happened to him.