Why Romeo Hates Juliet (17 page)

Security had been placed at the emergency hospital entrance to deal with all manner of people trying to get in once the news hit the airwaves that Romeo Boyd had been shot and was there. When Juliet and Sara arrived, the hospital staff recognized them from the superglue incident and allowed them in. The girls were directed to Romeo’s private room and when they got there, they found Tommy, Carrie Ann and Kristen all waiting outside the closed door.

The second that Carrie Ann’s eyes alighted on Juliet, she pushed past Tommy, grabbed the other girl by the arm and pushed her away. “You’ve got some nerve showing your face here after what you did, you bitch,” she yelled. “Leave now.”

“I’m sorry, Carrie Ann. It was an accident, I swear,” Juliet said softly, as Tommy and Sara wedged themselves between the two.

“He doesn’t want you here. Get the fuck out!” Carrie Ann screamed, as she lunged at the other woman again.

Tommy grabbed Carrie Ann’s arm and pulled her away. “Carrie Ann, leave her alone; it was an accident. You know that’s what the police said.”

“I don’t care what they said. She has no business being here. Romeo doesn’t ever want to see this slut again.” Juliet turned hopeful eyes to Tommy. “Has he regained consciousness yet?”

Tommy shook his head no. “Not yet, but the doctor is in there now.”

At that moment, the doctor came out of the room and Juliet recognized him as Dr. Clayton, the one who’d treated them when they’d been glued together.

On seeing Juliet, he came up to her, assuming that she was Romeo’s girlfriend instead of Carrie Ann. “Miss Soma, he still hasn’t regained consciousness, but his vitals are strong and he should come to at anytime. We’re hopeful that he’ll make a complete recovery.” Jealous at seeing the other girl being treated with such deference, Carrie Ann maliciously shoved Juliet out of the way and addressed the doctor. “I’m his girlfriend, not her,” she sneered.

The doctor ignored her rude outburst and addressed them all instead. “You can all go in again, but don’t tax him too much and no conflict, please,” He stared hard at Carrie Ann, throwing her a cautionary look before leaving.

One by one, they all filed into Romeo’s room. Feeling awkward and shy, Juliet and Sara stayed back near the open doorway. On seeing that Romeo’s face had regained some color instead of the deathly white, pasty look he’d had after she’d shot him, Juliet breathed a huge sigh of relief.

He was lying on his back in the hospital bed with his left shoulder all bandaged up, and he was hooked up to monitoring machines that were beeping at regular intervals.

As soon as she entered, Carrie Ann, in diva fashion, rushed to his side. “Baby, it’s Carrie Ann. I’m here for you, please wake up,” she cooed at him.

Tommy approached him from the other side of the bed and bent down to his friend’s immobile form. “Hey man, it’s me, Tommy. Come on, I know you can hear me. You gotta wake up. We’ve still got a lot of partying to do.” Suddenly, Romeo’s eyelids fluttered. “Yeah man, come on you can do it,” Tommy encouraged, as he saw his friend was trying to regain consciousness.

“Baby, come on,” Carrie Ann cried, as she brushed his wild hair away from his face.

Juliet didn’t say a word, but remained silent - and hopeful - at the doorway. All of a sudden, Romeo’s eyes opened and she gasped in suspense, as did everyone in the room.

“Romeo, it’s Carrie Ann; I’m here for you sweetie,” his girlfriend whispered, as they all watched Romeo’s eyes tentatively wander around the room.

“Wa - water,” Romeo croaked out.

Carrie Ann quickly got him the glass with a straw. “Here baby,” she said softly, as she helped him take a sip.

Elated at his friend’s apparent recovery, Tommy turned to his own girlfriend. “Kristen, go get the doctor.” She rushed out and returned with Dr.

Clayton moments later.

The doctor quickly approached Romeo and shone a tiny flashlight into Romeo’s eyes. “Do you know who you are?” he asked his patient.

“Ro-Romeo,” he barely whispered.

A collective sigh of relief was released in the room. Biting her lip with nervousness, Juliet stood stock still, hoping and praying that he was going to be alright.

The doctor continued his questioning. “How are you feeling, Romeo?”

“Head - headache.”

“That’s normal, don’t worry. And do you know where you are?”

Romeo looked around the room at all of the expectant faces and his eyes landed on Juliet’s fearful one in the back. “Hos-hospital,” he said.

“Good.” The doctor replied. “And do you know why you’re in the hospital?” Confusion flashed through Romeo’s eyes and he shook his head no.

“Okay, that’s normal in these types of cases. Don’t get upset,” Dr. Clayton reassured him. Romeo briefly closed his eyes and re-opened them before focusing on the doctor’s face again. “So Romeo, can you tell me what you do for a living?” Suddenly, Romeo’s eyes narrowed and panic flashed across his face. His gaze traveled once around the room again, as if he was looking for help in answering these questions. “I’m - I’m--,” he paused. “I’m a used car salesman??” he asked cautiously, as if he didn’t know if that was the right answer or not.

Carrie Ann suddenly gasped and Tommy turned to the doctor to whisper, “His father was a used car salesman.” The doctor frowned and came back to Romeo’s confused visage. “Romeo,” he gently prodded, “Do you know who any of these people are?” He pointed to everyone in the room.

Romeo’s eyes studied one face and then another and then another, and then his brow furrowed. He shook his head, no.

Carrie Ann let out another shocked gasp as she bent down to him. “Baby, it’s me, Carrie Ann. You know who I am, don’t you?” she whispered.

Romeo shook his head again. “N - no, I don’t,” he croaked out, “But - I know you,” he said, as he pointed to Juliet, standing shyly in the doorway.

“You - you’re Juliet.”

Carrie Ann threw the other girl a death look as the doctor motioned for Juliet to come forward and approach the bed. Cautiously, she did as instructed and the doctor pushed Carrie Ann out of the way to make room for the other girl.

Juliet came up to Romeo and smiled at him, “That’s right, Romeo, I’m Juliet. Do you remember me?” she asked him gently.

Romeo nodded yes. “You - you’re - my wife,” he choked out.

A shocked, collective gasp traveled around the room at lightning speed.

~ ~ ~

“Okay, can everybody please leave the room immediately? I need to examine Mr. Boyd again,” Dr. Clayton demanded.

Stunned into complete silence, Tommy, Carrie Ann, Kristen, Sara and Juliet all filed out, with Juliet being the last to leave. Her stunned eyes kept darting back several times to Romeo’s fixed stare on her, before the nurse finally closed the door to the hospital room.

Outside in the hall, Carrie Ann immediately launched into her. “I don’t know why you’re still here, you bitch. You’re just making things worse for him, can’t you see that?”

“I don’t want to cause anymore trouble, Carrie Ann. I just want to make sure he’ll be okay,” Juliet said to the blonde, as Sara came to stand beside her to give emotional support. Juliet was truly sorry for what had happened, but she still wasn’t going to stand there and be browbeaten by his girlfriend.

“Maybe you’re here to finish the job, is that it? You didn’t kill him when you shot him this morning, so maybe you’re looking for a second chance now?” Carrie Ann sneered, as she got right up into Juliet’s face.

“Carrie Ann, this isn’t the time or place for this,” Tommy firmly warned her.

“Why not? My boyfriend is in there fighting for his life and it’s all because of what
she
did to him.”

“It was an accident. I didn’t mean to do it.” Juliet whispered, as some of her earlier spunk drained out of her. Tears welled up in her eyes and she turned to Tommy. “I’m so sorry, Tommy. I swear to you, it was an accident, you’ve got to believe me.” But Romeo’s friend was stern, as he glared back her. “Look, I wasn’t there, so I don’t know what happened, but if the police say it was an accident then I have to believe them.”

Tommy had just been through one hell of a day. He’d been worried sick about his best friend and he was in no mood to give Juliet the absolution she obviously wanted. In his heart he knew that it had been an accident, but he’d also been a witness to the arguments between the pair of them and he felt that their disagreements could have been resolved in a more rational, mature manner than they had been. Granted, his friend was just as much to blame as she was, but damn it, he was just too tired right now to offer Juliet a comforting shoulder to cry on.

Sensing Tommy’s distant attitude towards her sister, Sara’s arm quickly came around Juliet’s shoulder, “Juliet, maybe we’d better go home now,” she said, as she started to pull her away from the group. Her sister had suffered too today and she didn’t need any more drama either.

Juliet nodded at Sara and allowed herself to be led away. At that moment, the door to Romeo’s room opened and the doctor came out. The group quickly surrounded him for news, as did Sara and Juliet who had turned back the second they’d seen the door open.

“How is he, doc?” a hopeful Tommy asked.

“I think he may have a case of temporary amnesia due to his head injury when he hit the ground, but I won’t be sure until we do more tests tomorrow,” Dr. Clayton explained. “I’m imploring you all to please go along with whatever he says right now.” His eyes landed on Juliet and Carrie Ann and spoke to the two of them directly. “Mr. Boyd has suffered a traumatic experience today and sometimes the brain will protect itself by blocking out certain memories and replacing other blank, empty spots with newly created ones. This is a state of confusion for him right now and it’s entirely normal in a case such as his. We have to be patient and not push him.” He gave Carrie Ann a stern glare. “Just play along with whatever he says for the time being until something triggers his complete memory to come back.”

“But how long is he going to be like this?” the blonde bimbo whined.

“We can’t say for sure. It could be a day or it could be years.” Everyone gasped and he continued, “All that matters is that we humor him for now so as not to cause any sudden shocks to his system with information that his brain can’t process. I suggest you all go home and let him rest tonight and we’ll see how he is tomorrow morning.”

Carrie Ann nodded. “Okay, I’ll just say goodnight to him,” she said, before moving towards the hospital room door.

Dr. Clayton put a restraining hand on her arm and stopped her. “He’s asking to see his wife and only his wife,” he stated bluntly and all eyes suddenly swiveled to Juliet.

“Me?” Juliet replied sheepishly.

He nodded. “Miss Soma, just go along with whatever he says for now. Don’t volunteer any information and keep him calm. Can you do that?” A glimmer of a smile flashed through the doctor’s eyes as he remembered their fight in the emergency room when they’d been glued together.

“Of - of course, doctor, whatever Romeo needs, I’m willing to do. Whatever…” Juliet’s words rushed out in a plea.

Carrie Ann’s eyes blazed with hatred as she glowered at her rival. “Why does she get to go? I’m his girlfriend, not her.”

“Carrie Ann, just shut up!” Tommy shouted at her. “You heard what the doctor said. He’s asking for her and we’re not going to make waves about it. This is Romeo’s life we’re playing with here and we’re going to do whatever we have to do to make sure he’ll be okay, got that?”

“Fine, but I’m not leaving here until she comes back out!”

Dr. Clayton turned to Juliet, “Please go in, Miss Soma and be gentle with him.” Juliet’s heart started beating out of her chest as she stared back at Sara, who gave her a brief smile of encouragement. Then gathering up her courage, she went to the door and opened it.

* * *

Romeo was lying on his back at an upright angle due to how the nurse had repositioned the bed. His eyes were closed and he was very still.

Quietly closing the door behind her, Juliet came forward to his right side and gazed into his serene face. Her eyes flew to his heavily bandaged left shoulder and her stomach suddenly did a series of sickening flip flops. She’d done that to him and if her shotgun had veered a few more inches to his right, she would have hit his heart and he would have died. She drew in a deep breath trying to steady her terrified nerves.

Juliet felt Romeo’s right hand lift up off the bed and grasp hers. “Juliet, is that you?” he whispered, as his eyes flew open to stare at her.

Juliet smiled and lowered her face so that he could see her more clearly. “Yes, it’s me, Romeo.” He smiled back at her. “I thought - you’d left?”

“No, the doctor was just talking to us outside in the hall.”

“Did he tell you I have amnesia?”

Juliet nodded. “He explained - things.”

Worry flashed in Romeo’s eyes as he looked away to gaze up at the ceiling. “I can’t remember very much. I - I know my name but I don’t know who I am; and those people that were in here before, I don’t know who any of them are - except for you.” His eyes came back to lovingly rest on her concerned face. “I know who you are.”

“Shhhhh, just rest now and don’t push yourself. It’ll all come back to you soon enough.” Not realizing what she was doing, Juliet tenderly began stroking his hand that was still clasping hers.

Romeo started fidgeting uncomfortably against the mountain of pillows his back was resting up against.

“Do you want me to adjust your pillows for you?”

“Could you?”

“Of course.” She quickly came closer and as her arms reached behind him to plump them up, her chest accidentally came right up into Romeo’s face. His interested eyes swiveled downwards to stare at the full cleavage peaking out of her t-shirt neckline. “There, is that better?” she asked him as she moved way.

His eyes came back up to hers and smiled. “Much, thanks.” He sighed. “I wish I could remember more. The doctor told me I got shot but he wouldn’t say how. Do you know, Juliet? Can you please tell me what happened?” He asked her the question just as his right arm was reaching for the glass of water sitting on the night stand beside his bed.

Seeing the movement, Juliet quickly retrieved it for him and brought the straw up to his lips. As he sipped the water, guilt surged through her body as she tried to come up with an answer to his question. What could she say? That she was the one who had shot him? “I - well - I think - ahhh -

maybe you should just rest for now and not worry about that,” she muddled, as he pushed the glass away from him.

“Okay, if you say so. You’re my wife, and I trust your judgment.” Suddenly, his right leg started fidgeting underneath the blankets.

“What’s the matter?” A worried expression suddenly flashed across Juliet’s features.

He frowned. “It’s my leg. I think I’ve got a cramp in it.” He fidgeted some more.

“Do you want me to get the nurse?” Juliet started moving towards the closed door.

“No! Could you, maybe, help me instead?”

“Anything! What do you need me to do?”

“Could you, maybe…,” Romeo suddenly lifted his bare leg out from under the covers, “… massage it for me?” Without a second thought, she quickly placed her hands on his calf muscles and began stroking his leg. “Higher,” he instructed. She dutifully moved her hands up to his knee.

“Higher,” he dictated again and she repositioned her hands to his thigh and started kneading again.

“Is that better?” she innocently asked him.

“Oh yeah,” he half closed his eyes in ecstasy. “That’s the sweet spot.” Juliet kept massaging his upper thigh for a few minutes and then as she went to lift her hands off him, he sighed again, “Just a little more, Juliet, and I should be okay.” With head bent down, concentrating completely on what she was doing, she started massaging his thigh again. Romeo watched her intently for a full minute with a slight smile on his lips. Suddenly the smile turned into a frown. “Juliet?”

She stopped what she was doing and looked up at him. “Yes?”

“I - I know that you’re my wife and all but - I don’t know anything else! I mean, I don’t know how long we’ve been married or how we met or even if we have kids?” his questions rattled on and he seemed to be getting more agitated by the second. “Do we have kids, Juliet? Do we?”

“Ahhh - no we don’t, but try not to get upset, okay? It’ll all come back to you soon enough, I promise.” Coming closer, she reached up and gently brushed some of his wild hair out of his face.

“I like that,” he smiled, as he closed his eyes, enjoying the way she was petting him. “More, more,” he whispered. “It’s helping me forget the pain in my shoulder.”

Juliet ran her soft fingers through his hair again trying to brush as much of it off of his face as she could. “Is that better now?” she asked sweetly.

He smiled and nodded at her. “You’re just what the doctor ordered.” He sheepishly looked at her. “But there is something else you can do for me.”

“What? Tell me?” Her panicked eyes traveled across his body, fearing that he was in pain again.

“Could you - maybe - feed me some soup? The food tray is over there and I can’t do it myself. I feel so weak right now.” Romeo made a move to sit up, but she quickly prevented him. “Don’t move! Just stay there and I’ll bring it to you.” She reached for the food tray sitting on a side counter and grabbing the soup bowl and spoon, came back to the bed.

He smiled at her and patted a spot on the bed beside his right leg. “You can sit right here,” he said.

Juliet, still flustered by all the guilt she felt over what she’d done, quickly did as instructed. Sitting down near his thigh, she brought a spoonful of soup up to his lips but he didn’t take it.

“It looks hot,” he complained. “Can you blow on it first?”

Juliet brought it up to her own lips and blew gently on it before bringing it back to his. This time, he gladly took the spoonful and smiled. “That’s good,” he said.

She fed him like that for a few more minutes before the door opened and a nurse came in. “Excuse me, but visiting hours are over and I have to change Mr. Boyd’s bandages,” she announced.

“Of course,” Juliet dutifully got up, but as she went to move away, Romeo quickly clasped her hand and stopped her.

“Promise me you’ll come back tomorrow?” he asked her, his eyes wide and imploring.

Juliet nodded, “If you want me to.”

“Yes, I want you to, Juliet. I want my wife here, by my side, always.” He smiled tenderly at her.

She gave him a quick smile back and put the soup bowl down, slipped her hand out of his and turned towards the door.

“Juliet?” She turned back to him and he smiled at her again. “I think you forgot something?” Juliet racked her brain, not knowing what he meant. Sara was holding onto her purse outside and she hadn’t brought anything in with her when she’d come into the room. “I don’t think so…” she replied, her gaze wandering around the room.

Romeo pointed to his right cheek. “You forgot to kiss me good-bye.”

“I - well - maybe we shouldn’t do that right now considering your delicate condition, Romeo,” she squawked. She would feel awkward doing that in front of the nurse who was still standing there waiting for her to leave.

“Oh come on, I won’t break,” Romeo pleaded. “Just one quick peck on the cheek from a wife to her wounded husband. It’ll give me the courage to get through my lonely night in the hospital.”

“Well - I guess it can’t hurt,” she smiled and shrugged her shoulders at the nurse. Okay, one quick microsecond touch of her lips to his hairy cheek and that would be that. It would keep him calm like the doctor said, and by this time tomorrow he might remember everything anyway, so she might as well just make the best of it for now. Juliet walked back to the bed and with her lips puckered, bent down to his right cheek which he had turned towards her, waiting patiently for her kiss.

But as her lips came closer, Romeo suddenly jerked his head forward so that her lips landed on his instead, and before she had the forethought to pull away from him, he’d brought his free right hand up, placing it behind her head. Like a steel clamp, he’d trapped her against him, forcing her lips down onto his own insistent ones, which had quickly captured hers and were holding on tight.

Imprisoned by his heavy hand and arm which were keeping her captive against him, Juliet moaned and tried to pull away, but even in his weakened state he was still very strong and the pressure he was bringing down on her was powerful. His hard lips began to move against hers then, demanding a response - a response she didn’t want to give, and her stiff, resisting lips attested to that.