"No." My week, flimsy voice hardened as much as I could make it. "I should be going now. Before it gets too dark." Rising to my feet, I fought hard against the urge I had to stay, to listen to him. I can't afford to do that. Pass the test. Get back home when you're done.
"See you tomorrow, Romeo."
“Pleasedon’tleaveme!” The words left my mouth in a frantic garbled jumble. I stared up at her from where I sat. “It hurts so much more when you’re not around. I know it’s selfish, but please.”
I stopped dead in my tracks, my back half-turned to him. My features twisted, confliction passing over them, confliction that shouldn't even have existed.
It hurts so much more when you're not around… He thought I made his pain better? But I shouldn't have cared about that.. I should have wanted him to hurt. To feel pain. It was an advantage for me and a disadvantage for him. It would put me one step closer to winning this twisted game of chess.
But I wasn't sure I wanted that anymore.
“Please, Juliet.” I couldn’t take my eyes off her, afraid she would disappear the second I did so. If a year ago, someone had told me I’d be groveling at the feet of Juliet Capulet, begging her to stay by my side, I would’ve called them insane and then probably beaten them beyond recognition. But things change. Not like the rivers, slowly corroding their way through the rock, but instead like an earthquake. Tremors ripping apart the world I knew.
The way he said my name…. I couldn't stand it. Not anymore.
"Fine." I let the word out as a slow, tremoring exhale. "Just this once." Out of all the idiotic things I'd ever done, this definitely took first prize. Anyone who knew me well would tell me that I had a death wish. I did, but that wasn't the point.
I let out a relieved sigh, shaking a bit from the cold. “Thank you. I’m sorry. But thank you.” I mumbled softly, trying to hide my smile.
"But I can't keep you up on the roof all night," I told him firmly, turning around as slowly as possible. "Alright? You have to go inside."
“Not now.” I avoided eye contact, shifting my gaze to the shingles on the roof. “I want to stay out here with you.”
"For now. But you're not staying up here all night." I tentatively approached him again, settling down closer to him than before. "Understood?"
“Understood.” I was pretty much lying straight through my teeth. She was insane if she thought I would leave her outside to freeze alone. But I was too grateful she was staying to protest.
I fell silent again, picking my fallen blanket off the rooftop and pulling it tight around my shoulders. Grateful for its warmth, I hugged my knees to my chest, letting my eyes drift shut again. I didn't know what to say, so I just….. didn't talk. If Romeo had something he wanted to tell me, he could speak up on his own.
“Juliet?” I spoke up softly, looking up at the sky. “I’m going to miss you.” I added quietly, chewing my lower lip.
My whole body went rigid at his words.
"You'll miss me when……….. you run? Or…. something else?" I was almost afraid to voice the question, but I did anyways, hands beginning to tremble again.
“I don’t know anymore. Maybe when you leave in the morning? I can just feel it.” I shrugged, wincing a little. “It aches. Bone deep.”
“I still don’t understand why.” I squeezed my eyes shut tighter. “Why me? Of all people. What happened to Rosaline?”
“I would tell you if I knew.” I chuckled softly, rubbing my temples. “I had sort of been… over her for awhile. A month or two at least. But people didn’t really question why I didn’t have a girlfriend because of her. Her family’s rich so my dad couldn’t care less. It just got everyone off my back for awhile.”
“Right.” I nodded slowly, shivering slightly as a breeze blew through my—well, Romeo’s—blanket. “I’m… sort of the opposite. I had a boyfriend in ninth grade….. uh, didn’t go down well with Angelo.”
“I can only imagine.” I shuddered a little. If Angelo ever found out I was spending time with his daughter, I’d be dead in a ditch before I could even cry out for help. “My family isn’t… terrible towards me all the time.”
“Neither is mine,” I replied, volume dipping drastically. “Angelo isn’t usually… violent.”
“Maria isn’t either.” I reached up to my new scar again, teasing up my hair to feel the raised discolored patch of skin. “Rafael is. But it’s normally just… small wounds. Lots of bruises on my ribs.” I cut off my rambling abruptly, falling silent again.
I swallowed, finally opening my eyes to look forward at him. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry you have to deal with that. And I'm sorry for complaining all the time."
“Complaining?” I looked back at Juliet, caught off guard. “Hell, you’re the only one who actually understands what it’s like. I’ve always been one of those… alone in a room full of people kind of guys. No matter how many friends I make. But you make me feel a little less like garbage, you know that?”
"Me?" I stared at him for a full seconds, my disbelief clear. "I do that? Romeo, I've been emotionally manipulating you for years."
“How were you doing that, by the way? You mentioned it before, but I’m kind of slow.” I smiled weakly at Juliet, summoning all my courage so I could look her in the eyes.
My gaze fell to the rooftop. "Just…. small, belittling comments. All that stuff with Matteo. Last year…. well. We got Andreas to try and take Rosaline's attention off of you. May or may not have had Marina talk to her."
“That was… shitty of you.” I rubbed my injured arm self consciously. “But I can’t really explain it. I just know what I feel.”
"It was shitty. If you haven't noticed yet, I'm a shitty, horrible person." I said this as if I was stating a fact, leaving no room for argument. "So I just… don't understand."
“You had good reason.” I replied gently. “If I had survived what you had, I would be vengeful too. I probably happened to be the easy Montague to target, didn’t I? Rafael calls me a weak link for a reason.”
"You weren't necessarily the easiest….." I trailed off for a moment. "But you were the main target because you're Rafael and Maria's son."
“Hey, Jules?” I laid down right next to her, lying prone to attack on my back. “Can you promise me something?” I looked up at night sky. Black and colorless, only a few stars daring to puncture the smothering blanket of clouds.