A Dustland Fairytale

“I’ll love you with all the madness in my soul.” – Bruce Springsteen

I was not the kind of guy who wore suits, who went to dances, or who liked doing either of those things. When Juliet kissed me at the party, I realized she didn’t care what anyone thought of her anymore, and I was proud of her. She’d told her parents exactly what was going on in her life – no more lying or sneaking out. There was always a smile on her face; she was happy, and so was I.

Tonight, I was glad I lived in California. It was warm and the sky was clear. There were more stars here than there were in New York, and that made me smile. I walked from my house to the garage, where Dad’s Corvette was parked. He and Stacy had gone to the same party I was about to take Juliet to, but they had left much earlier than I did. Dad was always punctual and I was always late – a bad habit I was trying to break.

Ten minutes later, I pulled in Juliet’s driveway. I walked up to the front door and rang the doorbell, listening to the clack of heels as they crossed the hardwood floors inside. Juliet opened the door a second later, smiling nervously at me. Her blond hair was piled on top of her head and she wore an amazing purple dress that flowed all the way to the floor. I grinned at her and asked, “Ready to go?” Like a true gentleman, I offered her my arm.

“Yes,” she said, looping her arm through mine. I lead her to the car, my mind racing. Part of me wanted to say fuck this party; let’s drive away. I knew of some concerts that would be going on tonight, but I knew Juliet wouldn’t want to do that. This was important to Juliet, and I didn’t want to let her down.

“You look great,” I said as I started the engine.

“Thanks,” she said, a huge smile across her face. It made her eyes sparkle, even in the semidarkness. I’d never seen her look so happy to be alive. “So do you.”

I smiled. “Thanks,” I said, pulling out of her driveway and heading towards the country club. California still wasn’t my very favorite place on earth, but I was a hell of a lot happier here than I was in New York. It’s not like I wasn’t happy there; when Dad told me we were moving I thought my world was ending. It was nice here, but it was nicer because I was with Juliet.

She was silent as I drove down streetlight roads, paying little attention to speed limits. I hadn’t changed since I moved here. I’d always been the same person, but I got Juliet to realize who she really was. Everyone grows and changes, and I guess I have grown up a little since I moved out to California months ago. I’ve grown up and I’ve grown happier with who I am.

When I parked the car in the lot outside the country club, I grinned at Juliet. She smiled back, still glancing nervously at the building. Her parents were inside, and so were mine. Eventually they’d have to get used to the idea of us being together, because I don’t think that would change anytime soon. I kissed Juliet after she got out of the car, and neither of us could stop smiling. I thought of what I’d told Juliet weeks ago: we have to make ourselves happy. I knew she’d taken my advice, and now I was taking it myself. For the first time in either of our lives, everything was as close to perfect as we could ever hope it would be.

We were young, in love, and pretty damn happy.