Hellloooo, my friends! It's been a while lol How are you guys? I hope everyone is well! ...Even after how RotT ruined all of us lol Sorry for a little hiatus there. A lot of stuff in life started to develop and I kinda got engulfed in it all lol Mostly happy things though, don't worry lol
Anyway! I hope you guys all enjoy this update! Much love, mates!
Also, I should note that I blame a little bit of the inspiration of this chapter to my girlfriend lol Anyway, have fun with this!
"Why then, O brawling love! O loving hate! O anything, of nothing first-!" I stopped mid-sentence as I gave Claire a confused look. "What is he even going on about in this? He sounds like he's being a pissy bastard." Claire looked as if she was about to choke on her water as she placed her glass back down on the coffee table before us.
"That's honestly how a lot of modern literature nerds depict him so," Claire drew out the 'so' for a moment as a smile appeared on her lips. "You're not wrong there."
"So some of the most like, normalized and like spoken about pair in history has a dude that's a pissy dude a part of it?" I gave Claire a look that was mixed with amused and confused as she just simply nodded along.
"It's a beautiful story the first time you hear it. Even more beautiful if some of the more," Claire hesitated for a moment as she seemed to try to figure out what word to use. "Controversial ideas are left out of it."
"What do you mean?"
"Romeo's just sixteen or so." I gave her a wide-eyed look as she continued it. "That's not the worse of it though."
"What could be worse than finding out I'm acting out as a sixteen-year-old complaining character?"
"Juliet is thirteen." Claire calmly reached her for glass again as I felt my jaw nearly drop.
"SHE'S THIRTEEN?!"
"You gotta remember this is in a completely different era than our own, Jim." Claire seemed to laugh a little as I still looked at her as if she ruined my look at the story for the rest of my days.
"BUT SHE'S THIRTEEN!"
"Yeah? People back then would get married at twelve, have kids till they were like twenty-six, and died at thirty-two of natural causes. What's your point?"
"She was a child."
"And if you think about it more that way, she would have been just seen as a woman as Romeo was technically an adult for a few years there."
"You're not helping, Claire." She just giggled at me as she placed her glass back down onto the table.
"Am I supposed to?" I gave her a half-hearted glare as she just laughed a little once more. "Hey, could be much worse. Romeo could have been written to be Paris' age and that would have ruined it more for you."
"How old is Paris?"
"He's twenty-five."
"AND HE ALSO WANTED TO MARRY THE THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD!?" I picked up my script as I slapped the page I was on. "THE FUCK WAS THIS MAN ON?! HOW WAS THIS THE IDEAL ROMANCE?!"
"Because they would have been together in death than live a life apart." Claire gave me a sincere look as she reached over and placed a hand over mine. "That love is this passionate and beautiful thing that is also violent and deadly. It's powerful in a way that it can supersede loyalty to family and friends and all other thoughts. As Friar Laurence says early on, 'These violent delights have violent ends'." My disgust and slight anger from before subsided as I just looked over the soft gleam Claire had in her eyes.
"Well when you put it like that," I smiled a little as I upturned my hand that she had captured so I could intertwine our fingers. "It really is a beautiful story."
"It is. It's not quite about the character's physical state that matters. It's what they feel. Or as some interpret, how they think they feel. It's all about emotion and how emotions move us. I honestly think that's why he used the idea of none of the characters having markings in his story. He wanted the feeling to be at the forefront. Not expectations or the idea of following fate, but to know and understand love in of itself." I gave Claire a soft smile as she slipped her hand out of mine so she could adjust something with her script.
"No wonder I have a quote from this play on my arm. You really seem to love this play and not just because it's romantic or something. You love it for its meaning." Claire giggled a little as she seemed to now be jotting down a note in her script.
"I've loved it since I was little." I watched her as she continued making small noted as she went on to speak a bit more. "My mom used to read me a child version of the story when I was little. Always explained to me that it meant if I ended up having a mark or not, I would find love. That no matter if it's short or for a whole lifetime, I'll be loved by someone one day and I would love them too. That's what would truly matter. If I loved them and it was mutual." Claire dropped her pencil on the page of her script before turning her attention toward me once more. "So I loved it for that interpretation and when I got old enough to read and understand the original, I still loved it for the same idea."
"And it just so happened you found a band that was just as addicted to Shakespeare as you were." I chuckled a little at the idea as Claire nudged me.
"Hey! Papa Skull is great and you can fight me on it." Claire giggled along as I raised my hands in defense.
"I didn't say they were bad or anything! Just saying it's fitting for my Shakespeare-loving girlfriend to end up finding a band with a fucking Hamlet album."
"Something wrong with that, Lake?" Claire gave me an amused look as she quirked up her right eyebrow. I just gave her a simple smile as I shook my head.
"Nothing wrong with it at all."
"Good." Claire smiled at me as she went back to her script to seemingly find where we left off. "Cause I'm not changing for anyone. Not even my soulmate." I smiled as words simply just fell out of my mouth in reply.
"I wouldn't want you to. I enjoy you as you are." Claire glanced over toward me with a soft smile before playfully shoving me in my shoulder.
"Shush. You're such a sap." I just smiled in response as she turned back to her script.
A sap just for you, though.
"Now, you left off on 'of nothing first', right? How about we just start over that line again?" I adjusted my script that was still in my one hand as I tried my best to adjust my focus once more.
"As the lady wants."
"You're telling me that he basically said 'I love you how you are' and your instant response was to shove him and say he's a fucking sap? Nuñez, who in the fuck taught you how love works?" I groaned as I hid my blushing face in my hands away from Darci's and Mary's questioning sights.
"I panicked okay! What else was I supposed to say? I love you? We've only really known each other for a month!"
"You know," I glanced at Mary in between my fingers as she was messing with something now on her phone. "I've heard people say it sooner to their soulmates. Being like, soulmates and all." I groaned once more as I buried my face further into my hands.
"Damn. The once smooth and confident Claire Maria Nuñez now a flustered blushing mess and all it took was a dude in her history class with a rose marking." I dropped my hands from my face as I shot Darci a half-hearted glare.
"A guy from my history class who lets me ramble about Shakespeare and then looks at me afterward like I was talking about the most interesting thing in the world." Darci gave me a wide-eyed look as Mary just smirked at my defensiveness.
"Yep, you've got it bad."
"The end of an era, huh Mary?"
"I hate you both." Both girls just giggled for a moment before Darci reached over to place a hand on my shoulder.
"Hey, there's nothing wrong with being in love with your soulmate. He's your fucking soulmate after all. You're meant to fall in love with him." I shrugged as I dropped my gaze from them to the floor before me.
"Doesn't make it any easier." I snapped my attention back up to Mary as she just smiled and let out a soft laugh.
"Preach, sister. Markings make it easier to find each other, but it definitely doesn't make the process of anything any easier. Still got all the awkward pieces and everything." Mary's smile softened as she continued. "But hey, he's a guy willing enough to listen to our Claire ramble about literature and why she likes a play that didn't quite age well if you put it under a microscope. He's passed the test in my book. Marking or not." I gave Mary an amused look as I crossed my arms over my chest.
"My soulmate as to pass a test now, huh?"
"Hey! No one just waltzes in and decides that they're a good match for Claire Nuñez without making it past the Mary-Darci certified Is He Not A Dick Test! He had to pass both portions of the exam there and he definitely passes mine." I turned my head toward Darci and gave her a questioning look as she just smiled in return.
"Trust me, Jim passes with flying colors. You have nothing to worry about." I sighed as I felt the blush creep up on my cheeks again.
"Wonderful to know my friends approve of my boyfriend."
"Well from what you said, Toby definitely approves of you." Mary gave Darci a confused look as she went on to question the other girl.
"Who in the hell is Toby?"
"BRO YOU SHOULD HAVE JUST SAID THE OTHER WORD!" I rolled my eyes as I closed my locker door. "It would have been perfect timing. Her saying that she loves the play quoted on your arm because she was always told it showcased that everyone can find love and be loved and then her being all soft about it. You could have said I love you and she wouldn't have even needed to think before saying it back."
"Tobes, I wasn't even thinking when I said what I did. If I was fated for me to say I love her then, I would have."
"Fate's for losers." I gave my best friend a confused look as we started walking together to our history class.
"Tobes, I'm her soulmate. Fate and destiny is kinda the whole thing here." He looked at me dumbfounded for a moment before narrowing his eyes at me.
"You've been hanging out with Claire too much. She gave you an extra brain cell that you're actually using." I shot Toby a glare as he went on to justify himself. "Hey! You've never been that witty with replies before! My instant assumption is your girlfriend gave you one of her brain cells which explains why the normally very witty Nuñez had a lack of words when you said you enjoy her as she is." I lulled over his response for a moment before rolling my eyes.
"Could also just be explained that she wasn't expecting it."
"Or you broke the normally hella smart Claire Nuñez with two sentences. Either way." Toby went silent for a moment as we continued walking together. "Do you love her though? We never really talked about that." I swallowed dryly for a moment as I brought my attention before me. My brain seemingly shutting off for a moment as I went on to try and explain how I felt.
"I don't think one word could really explain all that I feel for her. Sensations do more than words. Like, if I had to compare any of it to anything, it's just, warm. And fuzzy. Like comparing it to a warm drink after a bitter or cold day. The feel of the sun on your skin after a long while without it. It's just tingly and fuzzy and everything good all in one specific feeling." I snapped back into it as I reached up and rubbed at the back of my neck with a soft smile. "If that makes any sense." I glanced over to Toby to see the small boy was giving me a wide-eyed look as a smile appeared on his lips.
"Yep, you really do love her, huh?" I just smiled as I dropped my hand to my side. A small blush warming my cheeks as I brought my attention before me once more.
"Yeah, I guess I do." I just silently smiled for a moment as my mind lingered on to something from the night before.
"My friends still want to meet you. They wanted me to remind you of them because and I quote Zoe, 'I need to approve of his ass before this goes too far', end quote." I chuckled at Claire's words as I opened up my script to the first scene.
"They really want to meet me that badly?"
"They see me as their little sister. I guess it's just them being both hella protective and also wanting to just get to know who has been taking up their Claire Time. At least, as Douxie would say."
"When do you think would be a good time to meet them? We don't have rehearsals on Friday. Would that be good?" Claire gave me a slightly surprised look as she flipped open her script to the same page.
"You want to meet them that soon?"
"They're important to you, right? I don't see an issue meeting them. Not like it changes fate or anything." I chuckled a little to myself as a calm smile took over Claire's lips.
"Yeah. I guess not. Just surprised is all."
"They're basically your family. They mean a lot to you. I would want to meet them and get to see more sides of you. I'm your boyfriend. Why wouldn't I?" I gave her a genuine smile as the punk just gave me a soft look in reply. Emotions swirling around in her eyes as words seemed to battle on the tip of her tongue.
"I can't think of a reason you wouldn't." Her voice was soft as she gave her reply. "Friday it is then?" Her tone was suddenly back to normal as I gave her a simple smile and a nod.
"Friday it is."
"I'm meeting two of her friends on Friday." I could tell Toby snapped his attention over toward me as he replied.
"Two of her friends? Don't you know Mary and Darci?" I chuckled a little as his response reminded me of my own from a few weeks ago.
"Two of her other friends." I smiled as I basically mimicked Claire's statement. "They're two really close friends of hers. They're basically like two big siblings of hers. They really want to meet me and get a feel for their 'little sister's S.M'." I looked over to Toby as I gave him a proud smile. "She said that she has a good feeling about them liking me. Especially since I guess I've met the one in passing before. I guess I just don't recognize his name."
"What's his name?"
"Douxie. The girl's name is Zoe."
"Oh," Toby drew out the word for a moment as something seemed to click in his mind. "I think that's the British dude from that cafe your mom likes. You know the one she always has us stop by to get her that like chocolate thing whenever we're in town?"
"Oh yeah! That actually might be it! I thought his name was Doux though. I guess it's a nickname."
"I bet it is! Gues you're already approved of when it comes to him." Toby chuckled before continuing. "So when do you meet them?"
"Friday."
"O~!" Toby drew out the vowel as a smirk appeared on his face. "Meeting the family phase one: The founded family slash siblings. The first part of the possible trilogy." I rolled my eyes as we neared our history class.
"Don't make me anxious about this, asshole."
"I was born to make you anxious, Jimbo."
"And you do a wonderful job at that."
"Love you too, my dude."