We Don't Have to be a Tragedy

Juliet’s Point of View

I was kind of nervous.

Okay, kind of? Who am I kidding?

I am petrified. Utterly so.

Who cares if it’s just a Christmas present? What if he doesn’t like it? Will it screw our relationship up if he doesn’t? Will he hate me forever? Does he even like stuff like this?

Yes, that was all going through my mind. Even the last one, although I know for a fact that he likes graphic tees and band tees and such. His present from me, then, was an All-American Rejects T-shirt. Nothing else, since I didn’t know if he already had their albums or not. I felt horrible, guilty. What if he didn’t like it? He’d force a smile and say it was great, I just knew it.

And I had to face that in three hours.

I took a deep breath, lay back down, and finally, after many self-reassurances, fell back asleep.

Hey, it was only seven in the morning, can you blame me?!

Romeo’s Point of View

I can’t say that it wasn’t awkward for my girlfriend and her parents to come to my home on Christmas, because it was. Well, it would be in about thirty minutes. I mean, what if Joan and George got mad at me for something like hugging Juliet?

I rubbed my forehead nervously as I placed a small, silver wrapped gift under the tree. Mom grinned knowingly and Dad just shook his head with a grin.

“Whipped,” Dad mouthed to Mom.

“Just like you,” I shot back to him, and we all laughed. We were an easy-going family, so it was alright for me to do something like that.

Mom’s phone rang and she answered it, walking into the other room while she talked. From the tone, I figured it was Juliet’s mother. My suspicions were confirmed when Mom returned, all smiles, and said, “The Capulas are coming a bit early. They’ll be here in ten minutes! How exciting!”

“Yeah,” I said, leaning back and laying on the floor. “Exciting.”

Dad just laughed as Mom tutted at me.

Sure enough, ten minutes later, the doorbell rang.

“Romeo, would you get it?” Mom called from the kitchen, “I’ve got my hands full, and I’m sure your father is asleep, so wake him up on your way to the door!”

“Sure, Mom.” I called, rolling to my feet.

To wake Dad, I just clapped once really loudly by his ear, making him jump.

“What was that for?” he said with a half-glare.

“The Capulas are here,” I said simply, walking past him to the door, where I saw a few shapes through the glass that was at the top of the door.

“Hey,” I greeted as my eyes fell on Joan and George. “Come on in, please.”

“Thank you, Romeo,” Joan said, and George just put a hand on his shoulder with a polite nod, and they went in, and I could finally see Juliet.

“Come on in,” I told her, gesturing for her to enter first. She grinned, and on her way by she kissed me on the cheek. I grinned back at her, and we walked into the dining room, where Mom’s Christmas Brunch was being served.

Juliet’s Point of View

Our Christmas at the Davis household started with a fabulous Brunch cooked by Cathy. It was delicious, no lie. I’m sure I ate like a pig, although Romeo said in a teasing voice that the dog was getting more food than I was.

Then, we all gathered in the living room of the Davis home. There were packages of the Davis’s under the tree, and off to the side was the box that contained the gifts we had brought with us. My heart pounded uncertainly in my chest, the nerves kicking in again. As if he sensed this, like he always seems to do, Romeo reached over to grasp my hand and give me a grin. I grinned back, and we turned to where Cathy and Mom were excitedly sorting the gifts into piles.

“Alright, who’s going to open gifts first?” Cathy said brightly, turning to Romeo and I. “Which one of you?”

“What?” I asked in disbelief, but before I could say ‘not me’, another voice cut in.

“Juliet can.”

I looked at Romeo, who had shrugged to his mother. He saw my look, and smiled in a sort of apologetic way, and I immediately forgave him.

“Okay,” I sighed. “Sure.”

Cathy grinned really big, and I wondered just what it was for.