Gilded Vendettas • James M. Beaufort.

Chapter 11 • The Romeo and Juliet.

We were both young when I first saw you
I close my eyes and the flashback starts
I'm standin' there
On a balcony in summer air
See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns
See you make your way through the crowd
And say, "Hello"
Little did I know

That you were Romeo, you were throwin' pebbles
And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet"
And I was cryin' on the staircase
Beggin' you, "Please don't go, " and I said

Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes"

So I sneak out to the garden to see you
We keep quiet, 'cause we're dead if they knew
So close your eyes
Escape this town for a little while, oh oh

—-

Six years ago.

"Vi! Vi!" Lydia's voice woke Violet from her daydream as she dozed off in the courtyard of the school building.

"What?" Violet said with irritation, annoyed at being woken up.

"You forgot your script. I brought it here," Lydia said. "Thanks to James for collecting it yesterday—you dozed off again and forgot to bring it."

Violet raised her eyebrows curiously. "James? You mean your brother?"

She nodded. "Of course." Then she shrugged. "I don't know why he came to the theatre after practice ended. But he seemed genuinely concerned about you not having your script."

Violet took the script from Lydia, a puzzled expression on her face. "That's... unusual. He usually doesn't care about this stuff."

Lydia smiled, a hint of mischief in her eyes. "Maybe he just wanted to help out. Or maybe he has a soft spot for you."

Violet rolled her eyes. "Very funny, Lydia. Your brother probably just wanted an excuse to annoy me."

"Who knows? Maybe he's secretly a fan of Shakespeare. Or maybe..." she trailed off, giving Violet a knowing look.

"Maybe what?" Violet pressed, feeling a strange flutter in her stomach.

"Maybe he just wanted to see you," Lydia said with a teasing smile.

Violet rolled her eyes. "Sure, and maybe pigs can fly."

She glanced down at the script in her hands, her thoughts swirling. James had never shown any interest in her theatre activities before. Why now?

She shook her head, trying to push the thoughts away, and focused on her lines. But even as she recited Juliet's words, a small part of her couldn't help but wonder about James's unexpected gesture.

"At noon we have practice," Lydia reminded her, bringing Violet back to the present. "See you at the theatre, huh?"

"Yeah, see you," Violet replied, still mulling over Lydia's words as she headed off towards her next class.

◌⏳┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈⿻*.·

"Violet," Margot's voice brought me out of my reverie, back to thoughts of James and all the complexities of school life. Memories from middle school resurfaced. Did he know me even back then? Why had I never cared to find out?