Not His Juliet

Chapter 17

Not His Juliet by K. Jessica Ramirez

Chapter 17:

I wake up to a familiar noise besides my ear but I know I must be dreaming because it sounds oddly like the warning sound my laptop rings when it's about to die. Wait, I was on it last night. I sit up abruptly quickly plugging in my laptop to the nearest outlet. I glance out my window and then back towards my laptop. I must have spent half the night up writing and passed out. It's around late afternoon here. 

I've recently gotten better at reading southern sun for time but it's always nice to have a trusty technical back up. It's actually relaxing and rather nice to not have a clock in sight at every turn. The days seem longer that way, in a good way. I can't say I recall a day back in New York that didn't buzz by. Come to think of it my days never seemed to hold such excitement or even reason, aside from the professional one, to make them memorable. Yet everyday in this small town feels like an adventure, especially with Austin and Nikki by my side. Those are my favorite adventures, therefore my favorite days.

Maybe it's time to expand a branch of my company down here. It does hold great possibility for the recent down grade in country romances that seem just out of style nowadays. It could open big doors for my company if I played it right. Plus it'd give me a reason to drop by to see Austin once and a while.

You'll be married White. Stop these ridiculous dreams before someone gets hurt. You won't open a branch down here because you'll never step foot in this state so long as you’re married to James Jackson.

I sigh at my internal voice and push aside my thoughts and focus on my matter at hand. I prepare to shut my laptop off when a page opens up. My eyes scan over and my memory starts to flow back into my mind as the origin of this work comes back into play. I was writing last night, really writing. Maybe I shouldn't be so quick to dismiss the dream of a future with Austin, even if it were purely a friendly one. If by some miracle I've begun to write again, anything’s possible right? Somewhere in the back of my mind I register a sigh of defeat from my inner voice.

I let myself briefly look over my work whispering a specific part that stood out to me.

While little girls dreamed of becoming a princess I dreamed of finding my dream. I dreamed of finally grasping the concept of that old saying everyone always says, 'In a world where you could be anything, be yourself'. I believe everyone is born to do something, whether it's to inspire, to save, or to change. I believe I was born to fight some important fight. I have to have some importance to my life. It can't all regular, right?

I smile to myself. It feels almost as if this were someone else work. How odd it is to read my own work after so many years of not being able to conjure up anything passionately. I save the document under the name 'in the works' and store it away. I shut down my laptop and sneak it back into my bag still allowing it to charge.

I stretch my sore limbs and turn to change. I throw on a pair of skinny jeans and a grey V-neck. Today I need to speak to Nikki about Stark. Nikki's been in Texas for a couple of days now and neither of us has done anything productive towards the origin of the reason for her trip.

Today's going to be quite an interesting day. Nikki and I need to create and discuss our game plan for mission 'Long Lost Daddy'. We've both been expertly avoiding the topic ever since that first night of her arrival. I keep thinking that maybe if we constantly avoid it, if we avoid him it will go away. I can't help but feel a weird something in the pit of my stomach at the thought of meeting him. A part of me wants to grab Nikki and just forget him. That part of me wants to cherish the small sunlight in my life while the other part is willing to risk the odds to finally get some answers.