We Don't Have to be a Tragedy

Juliet’s Point of View

Tim, it seemed, had been Romeo’s friend since the seventh grade, and was pretty easy-going. He was our waiter, and brought our (separate plates, just so you know) spaghetti out to us in seemingly record time.

“So, you two have been together for…?” Tim asked conversationally during the café/restaurant’s least busy moment.

I flushed, and Romeo replied, “Well, um, just getting close to twenty-four hours now…”

Tim choked back a laugh and wolf-whistled. “Nice. I’m glad you chose one of Whitney’s Café Style Restaurants for your first date.”

“I am too,” I said suddenly, beaming. “It’s such a nice place. It’s a comfortable environment.”

Tim grinned. “Glad you think so.” he turned to go to the next table, but paused long enough to say, “And Romeo? I think she’s a keeper!”

I blushed, and Romeo’s cheeks darkened just a bit, but he smiled at me and grasped my hand.

Afterwards, we went to a movie - a double date with Tom and his girlfriend Clarissa, who had stopped by to pick him up after work. She was three years older than us, but she was fun to talk to. We exchanged numbers so we could text each other or call each other.

And then time flew by.

I didn’t need the breathing exercise, just my hand in Romeo’s warm one and his comforting and reassuring smiles down at me. School had been a blur, again, and here we were on Wednesday night, in the school theater.

I parted from Romeo to get my makeup and hair styled just the way Darcy had originally sketched on her dress designs, and Darcy was present to help me into the dresses.

The spotlights, as I may have forgotten to mention, helped me to focus on my lines because they also kind of restricted my view of the audience. Not by a lot, but by enough that they didn’t intimidate me so much.

Performing for the second night wasn’t as nerve-wracking as the first, and I kept my head calm and made it through. I was rather proud of myself, and in a rare moment that I was caught backstage at the same time as Romeo, he gave a thumbs up before stepping onstage. I held myself tall and proud, and Cathy was ecstatic with, “That’s right! That’s how Juliet should act - remember, dear, she’s a Capulet and they’re a very prominent family!”

The joys of being Juliet.

Well, the one foremost joy of being Juliet is kissing Romeo.

But that’s an entirely different story…well, sort of.

Romeo’s Point of View

I was practically swelling with pride…why?

Juliet was confident, she was radiant, and she was stealing the spotlight from every other character on the stage. It made me beam, and I gave her a thumbs up as I entered a scene.

I hadn’t once caught her doing the breathing exercise, nor was she hyperventilating or anything of the sort. She was standing tall, proud, and as I heard Mom tell her excitedly, “Just how Juliet should”. I don’t care if it’s conceited for me to be proud that I have her all to myself - sort of - because she was everything you could possible look for at this moment in time. Her confidence made her glow, which is how I get away with saying she was radiant, too.

Soon enough, the second performance was all over, and I couldn’t help but to, once more, sweep Juliet into a bear hug upon completion.

“Amazing,” I breathed in her ear, kissing her briefly.

“You were quite amazing yourself,” she said breathlessly, beaming. “That was so much fun!”

I laughed, and as he walked by, Rob kind of ruffled her hair.

“Nice one, Kiddo,” he said to her teasingly. It was a nickname that several of the cast had picked up for her because she was one of the few who’d never been in a serious reproduction of a play. They’d all unanimously decided that her musicals didn’t count.

“I’m going to go change.” she said, stepping slowly from my embrace. “I’ll meet you back here after you change?”

“Yeah,” I grinned at her, and she grinned back as we went to the opposite dressing rooms.

A few moments later, I emerged and had only to wait a few short minutes for her to come out in the midst of pulling her hair back into a ponytail. I strode up to her before she could reach me, and as soon as she finished with her hair, I hugged her again. She hugged back, snuggling closer and giggling.

“You were brilliant,” I told her again. “Amazing. Fantastic.”

“Thanks,” she grinned, and then her mother called us all to attention for post-performance meeting, and so we went over to the gathering cast members hand in hand.