Chapter 2: Romeo's Depression

Romeo woke up in the morning, feeling sick to his stomach at the thought of facing Juliet today. He knew Max wouldn't be going to school, because Max had gotten him sick, and Romeo unlike Max was going to school, even though he was also sick because his birthday was tomorrow and he had to see Juliet and try to get her to confess to him that she was getting married. He stood right where he usually did, waiting for her. She walked up to him, not liking the look on his face, as she bit her lip. "Romeo... are you okay?" She touched his arm, but he just pulled away from her. "You weren't planning on telling me when you were getting married were you?" He looked at her with a slight amount of rage in his eyes, but he was trying to control it the best he could. "Romeo...I wanted to tell you...But I didn't know how you would take it." She tried to touch him again, but he moved away again. "Whatever I just need time to think, Please leave me alone." He walked away from her, the pain in his body visible as she looked at him walk out of the room, his back slumped, and his mind lost among his multiple thoughts. 'I can't believe it Max was telling the truth.' Romeo slumped down in the boy's bathroom, his head in his lap, as he looked up at the mirror, then back down at his feet. He didn't want to be at this school anymore, at least not today, but he couldn't get out of it like most people could, because he didn't have parents who could or even would pull him out. He stood up walking out of the bathroom, coughing, the sweat from his fever blurring his eyes. "Romeo!" Benvolio had caught up to him, and was dragging him into the nurse's office, laying him down on the bed. "I'm fine..." was all Romeo muttered, as he tried to sit up only to be forced back down by his cousin, who was forceful when he needed to be. "You rest cousin. I know you aren't fine, especially after that feud with Juliet. I know she didn't tell you but she wants you to know that she's sorry. She was going to tell you soon, but she wanted to hang out with you on your birthday, so she told Max she had other plans and she would be at the wedding that night." Benvolio laid a small package in Romeo's hand. "What's this?" Romeo looked up at his cousin, a look of utter confusion on his face. "Juliet said it was your present, and she also gave me this." There was a get-well card sitting ontop of the package as if she had known that Romeo had gotten sick. Inside the card, she had written. 'I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I love you and I wish you would take me as your wife, but Max won't let you and I don't want you getting hurt fighting him. So please just remember as I am now, Happy and Loving you.' There was a picture,and two rings, they had given the rings to each other, as children when they had first run into each other. It was a promise that Romeo remembered loud and clear.

~.~ Flashback~.~

Romeo and Juliet were about a year apart, as it had always been. He had just been released from his house, after being sick for a week, and they were playing in the playground, and this was when his mother was still alive. He had won two rings in a contest, and Juliet had been standing there, staring up, but she couldn't win one. So he took one, and took her hand in his, and bent down on one knee, and in the cutest kid voice, he asked. 'When we are older, will you marry me?' He blushed looking down at his feet, as she tackled him, and they chased each other around the playground. He had left his ring at her house, a few days ago, and she had given it back. He heard someone clear there throat, and he looked up, the flashback ended. "Juliet! I'm Sorry." He sat up, panting kissing her, as they intertwined there fingers the rings touching each other. "It's okay. I love you." She moved back, noticing Max was walking past the room. "Um Max..." She raced out smiling at Romeo, talking to Max. "Can we postponed the marriage for another couple months." When Max said yes, she kissed his cheek and raced out of the building. Romeo was watching, but not saying anything at all, as he melded into the shadows, his blue eyes the only visible as they turned a slight green color like they sometimes did. 'I love you Juliet.' He walked back into the school building, dark thoughts building in the back of his head. He knew that he could no longer be the same person that he wanted to be...and he was going to lose Juliet and he knew it, and he wasn't going to let her know how much it hurt him to see her with Max. At the school, Romeo's cousin was waiting for him, the emotions on Romeo's face were obvious, even if he was trying to hide them. "Let me guess...the marriage is still going on...and she won't do anything about it..."The emotions seemed to circle the room, anyone who walked in the room would be able to feel the tension and the anger, that was how harsh the emotions were for him. "It shouldn't matter...Max is going to keep her, and there is really nothing I can do...and she won't be able to...but if he hurts her..." Romeo turned and walked off muttering to himself, he was angry, and he was going to do something about this, he just had to figure out what he was going to do.

!.! Benvolio...Juliet!.!

Benvolio was standing in the shadows, waiting. She would be walking out any moment, she had to figure out her feelings, or else she was going to lead someone on, and right now the one it seemed that she was leading on happened to be Romeo. She was not with Max when she walked out this time, only because Max hadn't shown up at all, he had been sick. "Juliet..." Benvolio came out of the shadows only to talk to her for a moment, but this was going to be a long moment. "What do you want Benvolio..?" She was acting different, she was harsh, but she seemed happy about something, but she didn't really want to tell anyone but one person. "Who do you really love...you know eventually they are going to figure it all out...and your are going to either lose one or both..." He was speaking like this to her becuase he didn't want Romeo to be hurt again, that had happened to much lately, and since today was the anniversary of his mom's death he hadn't been the same. 'What...does he know something he shouldn't...' Juliet was thinking to herself, it wasn't like she was keeping anything hidden, she loved Romeo, but she was stuck with Max. "look I don't know...okay...where is Romeo anyway?" She hadn't seen him all day, but then again no one really had, he was at school, but he seemed to be avoiding everyone, right now he was cleaning up in the art room, and getting ready to leave. "He's probably in the art room...today just isn't a good day to talk to him..." Juliet didn't know what today was, and the fact that all of Romeo's family was coming down today, the last time they had been there, all that had come out of it was fighting. "oh well can you give him this..." She handed him a letter she had written, now they were going to communicate through letters because Max wasn't going to let her have any contact with him, even if it was just a hello. "Alright fine...but you need to figure out your feelings before you lose everyone..." He turned and walked away leaving her standing there, she wasw getting him mad more and more lately, and he was tired of watching his cousin fall into depression just because she couldn't make up her mind. This was so much like the story of Romeo and Juliet that it made him feel like they were actually in the book, hopefully this didn't end like the book did.

!.! Romeo!.!

Romeo had finished cleaning up the art room, this was where he spent most of his time, because he could talk to Juliet anymore, so he had to find another way to spend his time so it would keep his mind off of her. But the only thing he had painted today was a picture of Juliet, he wanted to tear it up, but he couldn't bring his heart to ruin it,so he covered it up and went to painting other things that kept his mind off of her, and now it was time for him to go home. "Well I should have avoided her...she went home already..." He knew Max had been gone, but he was always watching even if he wasn't here, and he felt bad that he couldn't see her, or even talk to her anymore. But had he avoided contact with her altogether he would have been able to at least let her be happy, now she was never going to be happy, and it was all his fault. "well at least Max is sick, he took the key and walked to the door, his painting wrapped and in his hands, he turned and walked out locking the door. The only person who was in the halls was his cousin, so he walked towards him, keeping the painting covered so his cousin didn't see what it was. "So are you ready to go..."Benvolio could tell that Romeo was thinking about something, but it was about time to bring anything up right now, after all school today had been quite stressful for him, and he wasn't in the mood of talking to anyone. "Yea let's just go...we have to be at home or dad's gonna get mad at me again for not being at home..." Romeo was not ready for tonight, he didn't want to see all of his family, they had blamed him last time for what had happened to his mom but it wasn't his fault, at least he was told by some that it wasn't his fault. At this point he didn't know what he was supposed to believe, he had been lied to way to many times for the last week. Romeo just wanted to hide and not have to show, she had making his birthday food the day she had died, and well he had changed so much since he had found that out. Part of him wondered if it was him, and if the target had been him, which was what his family had said. "Romeo don't worry about it...if they do anything to you, I will be right there..." Benvolio was always there for Romeo, there was nothing he wouldn't do for him, but sometimes things just didn't work out as well as they should have or even would have...but that was not something Romeo was really thinking about. "Well let's just get this overwith..." The two walked into the house, which was filled with people, but when Romeo walked in everything went quiet for a moment and then the talking resumed. As Romeo walked through the crowds of people in his house, he heard them whispering. "isn't that her son..." The one who said that happened to be some friend of his mother's. "Yea he was with her when she died...I bet you anything it was his fault..." When he heard that, he turned on them, and growled. "oh shut up you don't know anything about me...so why can't you just leave me...alone...today is my birthday too...so how hard do you think this is for me...can't you just be nice to me for once...I'm sorry I killed her...maybe I should just go die...then you would all be happy..." He turned and ran off, the tears running down his cheeks, rain had begun to fall as he ran outside, he was so mad, he couldn't believe they had said that, his family hated him because it was supposed to be him according to them, he wouldn't have been missed as much as his mother. "Why are they so mean..." he was standing next to the river, looking at the rough waters, his mind was thinking about just going up onto the highest bridge and just jump into the water.

!.! Back at Romeo's House!.!

"Can't you people see what this does to him...he thinks you all hate him...because she died and he lived... what would you do if he took his life..." he was looking at all the people in this house, they made Benvolio sick to his stomach, they treated Romeo like he was lower than they were. "He was to little to do anything about it...but I bet if he could have saved her...he would have...he always does whatever you all want to make you guys happy..." Benvolio remembers seeing Romeo studying so hard to get the education his father wanted, the boy hardly slept when he was studying for finals, and he also remembered the time the boy walked up to each of his relatives and said sorry after his mom had died, becuase everyone had made him feel like it was his fault. "That boy has enough problems and you can't respect him for five seconds...if he was the one who died...his mother would miss him a lot, and if you tell him that he should of died...what do you think his mother would think of you..." Benvolio felt a hand on his shoulder, it was Romeo's father. "Look I know...You are his family...so even if my wife is dead...it's not his fault...his just a little boy...even now I still see that boy in him, even if you don't...so yea he does hear what you say and tonights outburst said all of that...he wanted to tell you it wasn't his fault...and all he wanted was your love...like what Benvolio gets from you all...Romeo doesn't show you that he was jealous, but he is so sad..." The people in the room looked at each other then up at Romeo's father, but they said nothing. "Tonight was supposed to be a night to remember and you can continue to do that, but I'm going to find my son...that is what she would want us to do..." Romeo's dad led Benvolio out of the house, nodding to his butler to watch the house, as they went out to find Romeo, who was probably still by the bridge.