Juliet sat by her window, watching cars roll lazily down the street. The rain drizzled down from the sky. The streetlights gave the overcast night sky an orange tint, casting the world in a warm glow. The street shone, a dark streak of black that cut across manicured lawns and stark white sidewalks. The thump of music from below her matched the fast beat of her heart as she watched the people leaving her house. They stumbled out, in pairs or alone, laughing and intoxicated, to their cars. Her eyes searched for the dark hair, the heavy leather jacket, the skin the color of the glass of a coke bottle, shining in the warm glow of the streetlights. Why was it Romeo that she had fallen for. Could it not be the boy she had been dating for months?
She was shook out of her trance by a tap on her window. She looked over to see eyes dark and deep, the same eyes that drew her in at the party. They were two black holes, never ending. Romeo smiled. Her hair was curly and tousled, frizzy in the humid, damp air. The orange glow gave her a halo against the night sky. She tapped again, and Juliet opened the window for her.
“What man are you, concealed in night, that lurks outside my window?” she said.
“A woman who hates her name,” Romeo replied.
“If I didn’t know better, I would say you were Romeo Montague,” Juliet said.
“I am not her if you don’t want me to be,” Romeo said innocently.
“What are you doing here?” Juliet asked, sticking her head out her window “We’re on the second story, you can’t have climbed, it’s too dangerous and someone would have surely seen you.”
“I flew up here,” Romeo replied. “Silly things like danger cannot keep me from you.”
“If my parents see you, they’ll call the police,” Juliet responded.
“The night will hide me from them, and even if they see me, I would rather that than not speak to you,” Romeo said. “Now come, fly with me.” She stood on the sloped tile of the porch roof. Juliet climbed out the window onto the porch roof after her, following carefully in the footsteps of the woman in front of her. The roof was slick with rain, and her feet slid as she took short steps down it. Ahead of her, Romeo stopped at the edge of the roof. Juliet slid down next to her. They were not far enough off the ground to seriously injure themselves, but they were far enough that the landing would hurt. Romeo took one last look over the edge, than jumped down carefully, landing like a cat. She looked up at Juliet, pumped with adrenaline.
“Coming?” she asked tauntingly. Juliet took a deep breath and jumped down after her. Her feet hit the ground solidly. The shock of the landing reverberated through her body as her knees buckled beneath her. She fell over, her hands sinking into the soft, damp earth. She let out a laugh of exhilaration. She stood up slowly and wiped her hands on her jeans. They were scraped a little on the palms, and a few drops of blood were starting to appear. She wiped them off again. The shallow grazes zigzagged across her palms like bolts of lightning. She looked up at Romeo.
“Well?” she said. Romeo only smiled.
They wandered down the streets, not entirely sure where they were headed. Juliet looked over at her. Romeo was tall and lean, with short cropped coily hair that floated about her head like a cloud. She wore a heavy leather jacket, worn for warmth and protection, not for style. Her ensemble was dark and heavy. They made a turn onto a busier street. They continued to wander down it, passing laundromats and pizza places. The bright fluorescent lights spilled out their large front windows, washing the street in pale light. It washed out all the color it touched, turning the world it touched grey. Romeo pointed to the convenience store they were approaching.
“Want a coke?” she asked. Juliet nodded. The blinking lights above the door read Pan Convenience. Neon lights in the windows proclaimed attributes such as “Coffee 1.99” and “lotto max now 60 million.”
Juliet followed Romeo in. It was small and cramped, with rows of junk food and coolers filled with soda and beer on one wall. Behind the counter, a young man sat in front of a locked case of cigarettes and other tobacco products. Romeo grabbed a coke, the kind in the glass bottle, and put it on the counter. The man looked up at them. He typed the coke into the register.
“3.49,” he said with a sigh. Romeo counted out the amount in coins from her pocket. He took the change from her and motioned for them to leave. Juliet grabbed the coke and headed outside. She turned the bottle over and over in her hands. The bottle read the name Julie. She smiled to herself. Romeo followed out behind her, smirking.
“Thank you, Julie,” she said, laughter in her eyes. Juliet twisted the top off and took a sip.
“It tastes different in glass,” she remarked. She made a turn down a side street, now leading Romeo.
“Where are you going?” Romeo asked, tagging behind her.
“Surprise,” she replied, enjoying knowing something Romeo did not. They traced a path down tree lined streets, passing the coke between them as they went. They finally approached a chain link fence and Juliet ducked through a hole in the wire she knew well. It was hidden away from the main road, below one of the many signs that read the hours of the tennis courts. She had cut the hole last summer with her cousin. The wire snagged at her shirt and scraped her arms. She heard a snicker from behind her and tried to turn to face Romeo. She only succeeded in causing herself to fall over. The wire scraped at her leg, drawing blood. She landed on the heels of her hands. She hit the ground. Her hands and elbows stung. She turned over to face Romeo.
Romeo was bent over staring at her through the hole in the fence. She laughed out loud this time, staring at Juliet, who was propped up on her elbows.
“Not funny!” Juliet said indignantly. Romeo laughed again, and put her head through the fence.
“What was that?” Romeo said with a smirk before she squeezed through after her. Their tennis shoes squelched in the wet clay as they made their way to the opposite side of the court. As their shoes sunk in, they pulled them out as fast as they could, finally collapsing on the metal benches meant for spectators. Romeo laughed.
“This is your surprise?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. Juliet hit her teasingly on the shoulder.
“Yes, so shut up,” she responded.
“Well I guess this is as good as a place as any,” Romeo replied. Juliet took another swig of coke. Looking over at Romeo, cast in the orange light of an overcast sky, she felt at home in a way she hadn’t for a long time. Romeo took Juliet’s hands in hers, tracing the lightning bolts with her fingers. The cuts were deeper than Juliet had first thought, and the skin was covered in gouges.
“Does it hurt?” Romeo asked suddenly. Juliet looked up into her eyes and nodded. Romeo brought Juliet’s hands to her lips, and kissed them gently.
“Better?” she asked teasingly
“Of course,” Juliet said with a small smile. “Do you love me?” she said suddenly. She cursed herself. It was too soon. They had just met tonight. Would Romeo think she moved too quick? That she was only a quick stop in Juliet’s life? That she was only here till graduation, when she would marry one of the men her parents picked and forget about Romeo.
“Yes,” she responded, “I swear it on the moon.”
“Not on the moon,” Juliet replied. “It changes with every night, and besides, it is not visible tonight. You cannot swear by something not present.”
“What do you want me to swear by?” Romeo asked, amused.
“Do not swear,” Juliet said. “It is too soon to make this permanent. It’s enough to know you love me.” She looked down at the lightning across her palms.
“Do you love me, Capulet?” Romeo asked her. Juliet put her finger to Romeo’s lips.
“Don’t say my name,” she replied.
“Why not?” Romeo responded.
“I do not need to be reminded of what keeps us apart,” Juliet said.
“You avoided the question,” Romeo said.
“Yes, I love you,” Juliet said. “My love is as deep as the sea.”
“And like the sea it gets weirder the deeper you get,” Romeo teased. Juliet hit her on the arm.
“That was meant to be sweet,” she said. Romeo laughed and she felt jittery. She liked making Romeo laugh. She was witty and soft in a way Paris was not, as hard as he tried. She touched Romeo’s cheek. It was soft and warm against her hand. She looked her in those eyes that drew her in.
“Well well, Juliet,” she said. “Feeling bold?” And then Romeo’s lips were on her own, or more aptly, her lips were on Romeo’s. And she was kissing her. And she was soft and tasted sweet like coke and harsh like metal. And her lips were soft and gentle. And she was looking Romeo in the eyes again. And she was being dragged in. Obsidian eyes, black hole eyes. And then Romeo was kissing her. And it was just as soft and Romeo tasted just as sweet and they were in their own world. And then Romeo put her hand behind Juliet’s head and pulled her deeper into the kiss. They kissed for what felt like hours.
She was brought back to reality by the sound of a passing train.
“I can’t stay,” she said, feeling her heart drop. She wanted to stay, she felt it with all her being. Romeo traced her hand along Juliet’s cheek.
“Why not?” Romeo said, leaning in for another kiss. Juliet pulled back.
“My parents will notice I’ve been gone,” she said. She looked at Romeo. “I really wish I could.” She gave Romeo a quick kiss. “But I have to go.” She stood up and began to walk back across the tennis court, her sneakers sinking in and pulling back out slowly, every step taking effort. She made her way down the tree lined streets back to her house, where the music still pumped; but now, her heart beat faster.