It Looks Like Cheryl's Getting A New Love Interest On Riverdale

Prepare for even more heartbreak, Choni shippers, because it looks like Cheryl is moving on with a new girlfriend. Well... she’s not exactly new, actually. Cheryl’s junior high crush Heather has been mentioned a few times throughout Riverdale, going as far back as Season 2, but now she’s finally making her debut appearance on the show. So, just who is Heather on Riverdale, and what will her relationship with Cheryl look like? It turns out she has more in common with Cheryl than expected.

Heather finally arrived in Riverdale at the end of Season 6, Episode 14, after a few episodes of Cheryl reminiscing on how much she missed her childhood friend and first crush. Earlier in Season 6, Cheryl’s repentant mother confessed to hiding years of love letters Heather had sent Cheryl after Penelope forced them apart, and then Percival’s spell unlocked more memories Cheryl had with her first love. Finally she reached out to Heather (who, it turns out, had been living in Greendale this whole time) and they reconnected. It seems very clear the old flames will be rekindling their romance, but their connection goes even deeper — Heather also revealed she’s a witch. Cheryl has only just begun tapping into her own magical powers in Season 6, so her renewed bond with Heather will be both romantic and very informative for her growing witchcraft.

Sadly, this does seem to be another nail in the Choni coffin, as Toni is raising her baby, Anthony, with Fangs now. Heather’s arrival is actually kind of a full-circle moment in the Choni story, though, since she played a key role in the couple first getting together. Back in Season 2, Cheryl was finally able to admit her feelings for Toni after telling her about her first love, Heather.

Heather is played by Caroline Day, whom fans might recognize from her other buzzy TV and movie roles. Day got her start as Emmalin on the first season of Army Wives before joining Shondaland as Olivia Pope’s secretary Lucy on Scandal. Most recently, she played Chelz on Billions, and has had supporting roles in major movies like I Feel Pretty and The Goldfinch.

Cheryl’s romance with Heather is just starting to heat up — find out when it will truly ignite by turning into new episodes of Riverdale Season 6 Sunday nights at 8 p.m. on The CW.