Disclaimer: I do not own Romeo and Juliet in any way. Just to get the story rolling :) Enjoy!
(Cassie POV)
"What do you mean, you're breaking up with me?" I yelled at Adam. We were in the school locker hall, which means a crowd had gathered to watch us, including the infamous Darian.
"Yeah. I would've told you sooner, Cass, but I was scared of, well, this."
"You should be scared!" I cried. "You're a manipulative little liar. I never want to see you again, you bastard!" I stormed off, looking to make sure Darian was still there. He was.
It was the day after final planning. Even though I really didn't want to do this, the Circle had voted giving me no choice. Faye, Adam, Diana, and I had gone over the plan last night. Even though I knew the break-up was just an act, it still hurt. What if it was real, and Adam really did hate me? I knew I shouldn't be thinking that way. Adam loved me, and I loved him back. We were soulmates. So I pushed the thought out of my head. Time to act.
I was late for Mr. Gilmer's class. The only seat left was next to Darian. I supposed Diana had made sure of this for me. I took my seat without glancing at Adam.
"Hi," I said to Darian.
"Hi," he responded quickly. He didn't even glance at me.
"So," I started, trying to make conversation, "what did I miss so far?"
"Not much. He just took attendance, and he'll probably give us another lecture on Shakespeare." His posture was extremely stiff, as if he didn't want to be near me. I knew I had to change that, but I wasn't sure how. Then the perfect opportunity came.
"Miss Blake, Mr. Crespi, since you're both paying so much attention to what I'm saying, why don't you come up here and act out a scene from Romeo and Juliet?"
Instantly, dread flooded Darian's face. It was as if he knew something would go wrong and he couldn't stop it. But we both had no choice.
I had mixed feelings. I knew this would definitely help the plan, but could I pull it off? I wasn't sure.
Mr. Gilmer gave us the scripts. The balcony scene. Great.
I had to start off, since Mr. Gilmer cut off Romeo's first monologue. "O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" I spoke with emotion I did not feel. The way I got through it was imagining it was Adam I was acting with, not Darian. "Deny thy father and refuse thy name. Or, if thy wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I'll no longer be a Capulet."
I had the majority of the speaking for a while, and Darian didn't put much effort into his performance. But then his first real speaking part came, and no one in the room could deny the compelling way he spoke his piece.
"By a name I know not how to tell thee who I am. My name, dear saint, is hateful to myself because it is an enemy to thee. Had I it written, I would tear the word." His voice was like soft velvet as he professed his love to Juliet. I had never heard anything like it. If I hadn't touched his hand that first day, I would be completely sprung over this boy with the sexiest voice known to man.
Mr. Gilmer stopped us there. "Bravo!" he clapped. "Great performance, kids. Can we give them a round of applause?" The classroom gave us dull applause. I saw Faye smirking in the back of the class at me. Then I realized she had set the Shakespeare thing up. I gave her the worst glare I could manage, but I knew she wasn't perturbed.
Then I saw Adam's face. He was shocked. I hoped it was because he didn't know I could act.
Thankfully, the bell rang then, and I could turn my attention to Darian. "Hey, do you wanna hang out during break?" I asked him flirtingly.
"Uh, no, I need to…do stuff," he answered. Then he ran quickly out of the classroom, leaving me alone and back to where I had started.
