Romeo’s Kiss – chapter eight

Brian sat staring out the window of the classroom, staring at Julie as she sat out side on a bench waiting for her next class while drinking a Dr. Pepper. He sighed, resting his chin on his propped up arm. He had had a dream last night and now all he could do was think of it, and her. He didn’t know why he could like someone with so much hate for him, it was ironic really, but no matter how hard he tried not to think of her, everything reminded him of her in some way.

The dream he had had last night was so weird; they were on stage, doing the play, everyone was out in the audience, the whole town was there. Everyone was running around, doing something, he was so nervous as he looked over at Julie and saw that she looked as relaxed and calm as a person could be. The fact that she wasn’t a nervous wreck made him feel a little better, knowing that if she wasn’t biting her nails he had no reason to either.

Already dressed in their costumes they made their way behind the closed curtain for the next scene.

“Where art thou Romeo?” Julie asks as she awakes from her pleasant sleep to find friar Laurence in the Capulet family tomb with her. She looks down to find Romeo ‘slain’ on the floor beside her ‘grave’ She gasps and falls to the floor. She says a few words, “I see drugs have been your death…and not a measly drop to help a friend…maybe there is still a drop left on thy lips.” She stated before lowered her head to kiss him softly. Romeo lies still as Julie leans back against the bed, finding no other hope she takes the dagger from under her silk pillow and stabs herself, then falls back, almost as if lying in her Romeo’s arms.

Brian hears the applause as the curtains close, once they are invisible to the crowd he and Julie lean up and he helps her off the floor where she sat next to the fake knife and the cardboard concrete set up all around them. Everyone gathers on stage to take a final bow as the curtain goes up again. There’s a chanting coming from the classmates all around them. ‘Kiss, kiss, kiss’ they chant. Finding that it’s directed at Brian and Julie they both blush and looked at each other. Brian turned to face her but she backs away, tears blurring her eyes, she shakes her head silently and walks off stage. Everyone grows quiet and yet again Brian feels like digging himself a hole to crawl up in and die as everyone turns to him…

“Brian? Are you paying attention?” Mr. Jefferson asked as the class’s attention was turned to Brian as his eyes clouded up from his latest memory of the dream.

“Huh, oh, yes sir. I’m payin’ attention.” He lied. As he looked down to see what page of the book they were on, he looked over to Trevor for help and Trev lightly picked up his book and tapped one side of the page to show where they were.

“So what were we just discussing?” Mr. Jefferson asked as he tapped his foot on the floor.

“Um, we were…just…” Brian struggled to flip through the pages in his book to the page Trevor showed him. The class started to giggle at Brian’s sudden clumsiness. “We were just discussing the…the mating habits of African ants?” He said, more as a question as he scrunched up his nose and looked at Trevor, the class burst out laughing, even Mr. Jefferson was chuckling over it. Brian felt his face get violently red as he shut his book, figuring out that his friend had betrayed him of the actual lesson they were learning. He sank down in his chair as Mr. Jefferson motioned for him to go up to his desk. Brian swallowed hard and slowly made his way up to the front of the room. Mr. Jefferson told him to go down to the office and tell the principal about that daydream he was swept up in so Brian trudged down the hall and into the office where he sat and talked to the secretary but refused to admit he was day dreaming.