Thanks to those who have reviewed. You're the reason I keep doing this, just when I think I'm finished! Glad you're enjoying it.
Wheeler's mood changes quickly when they get there and he sees his very own Juliet taking pictures from the balcony. While his new friends exchange curious glances as to what has caught Wheeler's interest, Wheeler moves to stand below the balcony and they follow, unnoticed by him.
Wheeler looks up towards Linka and calls out,
"But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Linka...err, Juliet is the sun."
"Well hello down there," Linka says as she smiles down at Wheeler, until she sees his companions. Her look sours and the tone of her voice gets colder as she continues, "Romeo."
Wheeler looks back to see what she's looking at.
"Oh, this is Catherine and Rachel. They've been my translators today."
"Translators? I have not needed any translators. Everyone here has been more than happy to speak English with me."
"Yeah well, you're prettier than I am. That makes you more persuasive."
She just rolls her eyes.
"Stay there, I'm coming up."
"I am getting ready to leave. There are other people who would like to see the view from the balcony."
"I'll be right there, Babe."
"Whatever."
Wheeler turns to his companions and politely dismisses them.
"Hey, thanks for everything. It was nice meeting you both, but I don't think my uh, girlfriend appreciates me spending my day with two pretty girls, so I guess I should go smooth things over with her."
A little white lie never hurt anyone, right?
"Girlfriend? You never said anything about a girlfriend!" Rachel says.
"Umm, you never asked. Enjoy the rest of your trip," he says as he heads towards the entrance of the building.
Wheeler steps out onto the balcony with Linka and leans his elbows on the rail to mimic her position.
"Hey Babe."
"Hi."
"Why are you mad at me? You're the one that ditched me!"
"I did not think you would be interested in the things Gi and I were going to see. I know you did not really want to come here and just said yes for my sake."
"You're welcome, by the way."
Linka finally realizes that she never did thank him.
"I am sorry…thank you."
Wheeler nods his head, accepting her apology and dismissing any sore feelings he had.
"Kwame and Ma-Ti are pissed at me, so I couldn't hang with them and you and Gi took off before I even had a chance to tag along…so I had no other choice but to walk around by myself. I can't help it that I acquired some fans along the way. Where is Gi anyway?"
"We each wanted to see different things and since we have limited time, we decided to see what we wanted so we would not be disappointed that we missed anything. Then we will share pictures and stories…living…what is the word? Through each other"
"Vicariously?" He suggests.
"Da that is it…living vicariously through each other."
"So tell me about this place…Casa di Giulietta. What's the big deal about Juliet's house? Especially if she wasn't even real."
"I trust you know the story, considering you were able to recite a line…very impressive by the way."
"Uh, thanks…I was on stage crew in school. I have a lot of random lines from different plays memorized so it's not that impressive."
"I still think it is. Come on," she says as she takes his hand. "I will show you 'the big deal' about Juliet's house."
She leads him out to the courtyard where they stand in front of a statue of Juliet.
"The story is that the family that lived here was named Capuleti…the inspiration for the Capulet family. In 1905, the city bought what was an abandoned, overgrown garden and decided its future…turned it into this. Rumor is that this was once actually a…" she pauses, unsure of what to say next.
"A what?"
"I am not sure of a nicer way to say it…a…whorehouse."
Wheeler laughed out loud and Linka blushed.
"It's ok Babe…there really is no 'nice' way of saying it. Best to just be blunt!"
Wheeler changes the subject and lightens the mood.
"Uh, is it just me, or is her right boob shinier than her left?!"
Linka laughs at his observation.
"It is not just you. Supposedly, it is lucky to…rub it."
"Oh yeah?!" He says as his wiggles his eyebrows and rubs the statue for luck.
"You must really be desperate, Yankee," she says as she rolls her eyes.
"Hey, that's the most action I've gotten in a long time! So that's the point of the statue? Just so people can come here and feel her up for luck? Doesn't seem right."
"And yet you just did it anyway!"
"I don't wanna be the guy who went to Italy and didn't grope Juliet. And if I started having bad luck, I'd never forgive myself for passing up the opportunity!" He jokes.
"Bozhe moy…pig. The statue is dedicated to the joys of being in love," she explains.
"Cool," he simply says.
She takes pictures of the statue and they stand there in an awkward silence.
"So," he starts, unsure of whether or not to continue the rest of his sentence.
She looks up at him and quirks an eyebrow.
"'So,' what?"
There was no turning back now for Wheeler.
"Umm, have you ever…known the so called 'joys' of being in love?"
She contemplated for a while, trying to figure out how to put it into words.
"Nyet…I do not think so. And any feelings that I have ever felt that may have been close to love…they seem to bring more hurt than joy."
"Yeah," he agrees somberly.
"What about you?"
"Me?"
"Da…if you are going to ask me, it is only fair if you answer me."
"Right…of course. Uh, it's kinda complicated I guess," he says nervously as he runs his hand through his hair.
"It is a yes or no question I thought."
"Well, I have a yes AND no answer. I thought I was in love before…girl next door, high school sweethearts kinda thing."
"And?"
"And what?" He asks, confused at what more she wants from him.
"What happened? Or are you still…?"
"NO! Oh God no, that was yeeeeears ago. A life time ago it seems. Before I joined the Planeteers."
"So, what happened?"
At Wheeler's hesitation, Linka apologizes.
"I am sorry. I do not mean to pry. You answered the question, you should not have to elaborate."
"But I didn't really answer it," he says before continuing. "The Planeteers happened. I came to Hope Island and…"
Once he realizes she's expecting him to continue, he finishes his thought.
"Things changed. The long distance thing wasn't working and there was…someone else."
"She fell in love with someone else?" Linka asks.
"No…not her. I did…I think."
Before Linka has a chance to respond, a tourist couple asked,
"Can ya'll take our picture in front of this here statue?!"
"Da, sure," Linka says as she takes their camera.
"Thanks. We're here on our honeymoon. How 'bout ya'll? Ya'll look like newlyweds!"
"Nyet, err, no. We are just visiting. We just work together. Here Yankee, hold my camera."
"Yankee?! Are ya'll from the States? Well, obviously yer not with an accent like that, but you called him 'Yankee.'"
"Yeah. I'm American," Wheeler says gruffly.
"So are we…but not Yankees…God forbid!" The southern couple laughs. "The south will rise again, eh Yankee?!"
Wheeler is in no mood for jokes. A perfectly good conversation between him and Linka was interrupted…a conversation that he felt was going somewhere.
"The south is about to get a serious beat down," he mumbles so that only Linka can hear as he walks away.
Linka takes the couple's picture and walks over to Wheeler.
"That was rude," she admonishes.
"No, what they did was rude…interrupting us when we were in the middle of talking…calling me Yankee…especially when we were doing them a favor…" he rambles on.
"I am sorry," she interrupts.
"For what?"
"I never considered that when I call you Yankee, that you might find it offensive…that it can be used as a insulting term."
"I'm not offended by it. Especially when it's used by bitter rednecks…I'm proud of my country's history. And I know when you say it, it's just a nickname. Me being offended by that would be like you being offended when I call you 'Babe.' Wait…you're not offended when I call you 'Babe' are you?"
"Nyet…as you said…it is a nickname…a term of endearment," she says as she takes his fingers in hers and squeezes.
He smiles down at her and turns his attention to the bothersome couple who are now standing by the wall of the courtyard.
"HEY! Those people are vandalizing that wall!" He pulls his hand out of Linka's and rolls his sleeves up as he begins charging towards the wall.
"Nyet! Wheeler, stop!" She says as she rushes over to grab his arm. "It is ok…you are SUPPOSED to write on the wall!"
"What?"
"They are writing to Juliet for advice. Or some just write the names of their true love. There is even a group of women, Club Di Giulietta, who answer the letters that people write to Juliet. They give advice and are called Juliet's secretaries."
"People know they're not actually getting a reply from Juliet Capulet right? I mean first of all, she's fictional, and second of all, even if she was based off a real person, that person is dead!"
"Da, I know, her tomb is not far from here…I would like to go there next if you want to join me."
"Sure…right after you leave your message on the wall."
"I already did…before I went into the house."
"You did?! Where? What'd you right?"
"None of your business. Besides, I wrote it in Russian, so only Juliet and I will ever know!"
"Oh so Juliet speaks Russian does she?" He says sarcastically.
"She speaks all languages."
"I guess those are the perks of being fictional…being all knowing."
"You do not have to be fictional to be all knowing," she says as she playfully elbows him.
"Oh, right. I forgot I was in the presence of the biggest know it all!" He responds by putting his arm around her shoulders and pulling her to his side.
"Besides, love is a universal language. But since you are a guy, of course you would not know that!"
"Oh please! I'm a thousand times more romantic than you are!"
She stops and crosses her arms in front of her. He drops his arm from her shoulders, sensing her sudden mood change, and feeling he's about to get yelled at. It wasn't as bad as he expected.
"There is a difference between romance and flirtation Yankee."
"I see why you would think that…but did you ever consider that flirtation is just part of the process? The first step leading up to romance?"
She pondered that for a second and it seemed as if she was considering it. Then she smacked his chest and said,
"You can come up with an excuse for anything! Come on, let us go to Juliet's tomb."
"Oh yeah, Babe…a tomb...that's soooooooo romantic."
She pulls him by the bend of his arm and he willingly follows, just like she knew he would.
To Be Continued...
