Juliet’s Survival - CHAPTER 2 - Part 2
CHAPTER 2 (Part 2)
If I had even a bit more strength than Tybalt, I would have definitely grabbed him by the collar and dragged him in front of Mercutio.
“Tybalt, Mercutio seems like a really nice person. He’s very loyal to his friends, and I think he’s the kind of man you could get along with.”
“Mercutio is Romeo’s friend, isn’t he? You get to know a person by their friends. If he’s loyal to a guy like Romeo, he’s worth knowing.”
“Tybalt, Mercutio seems quite generous. Even when I made a mistake, he accepted it graciously. It would be nice if you could be friends too.”
“If that means giving in and letting a guy like Romeo in, then that’s a problem too. You need to be assertive when you need to be assertive.”
Such useless arguments repeated several times. I was completely fed up. Tybalt seemed to either have ears that couldn’t hear or a brain that couldn’t understand. To him, Mercutio was not Mercutio but ‘a guy who’s friends with Montague.’ And he seemed unwilling to hear or accept any explanation beyond that. What a narrow-minded person!
I went up to my room and took out some writing paper. I hoped Tybalt would know what I had done because of his stubbornness. And I hoped he would regret it. I wrote the first line of the letter.
[To Romeo]
* * *
“It’s magnificent.”
Tybalt muttered with a bored expression.
“That’s the beauty of it.”
I said soothingly.
We were at the National Museum of Art. Tybalt had looked bored from the moment we entered. He followed reluctantly at my request, and his unwillingness was evident. Well, Tybalt and art didn’t seem to go well together even to me. He was the quintessential no-man’s land..
“Why are you being so fidgety?”
“It’s nothing.”
At my naturally innocent face, Tybalt nodded without question. I secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
There was a purpose to bringing Tybalt to this art museum that didn’t suit him. Without turning my head, I squinted in all directions, growing increasingly impatient when the person I’d promised was nowhere in sight.
I asked Romeo to come to this National Art Museum. With Mercutio.
Of course, I didn’t expect the two to meet and spontaneously become friendly. Considering Tybalt’s stubborn demeanor, that was unlikely. If Mercutio was to be with Romeo, the outcome was obvious.
Magic needed to be countered with magic. The reason I came to the art museum was to see the masterpiece “Friendship” located here. No, to be precise, it was to show them that painting.
Magic was infused into every Masterpiece. The magic imbued in “Friendship” was exactly as the title suggests: it creates a bond of camaraderie between two people who look at the painting together. I planned to show Tybalt and Mercutio that painting. Meeting with Romeo was a risky venture for me, too, but if the plan succeeded, I could achieve results beyond the risk.
Of course, I didn’t think that encountering Mercutio and Romeo at the art museum meant that they would get along and look at the painting together. Life is never that easy, so I needed to do some subtle maneuvering.
First, Romeo and I would confirm each other’s location after leaving the museum.
Second, to discreetly lead Tybalt and Mercutio to the front of “Friendship.”
Third, make them look at “Friendship” at the same time.
It was a simple plan. But the execution was not as easy as it seemed. I was already facing difficulties in immediately finding Romeo.
“There’s a bug.”
Tybalt muttered, his voice filled with animosity. His tone was far too murderous to have seen an actual bug. No way. I felt a sense of foreboding and followed his gaze. There, as if on cue, was Romeo and Mercutio.
“An art museum that lets bugs in. Disgusting. Let’s go back.”
Tybalt turned on his heel. I couldn’t let it end like this. I urgently spoke up.
“I want to explore the museum.”
“You don’t have to visit the museum right now. Just being in the same space as that Montague makes me uncomfortable. Let’s save art appreciation for next time.”
Once again, Tybalt’s stubbornness showed no sign of breaking. I decided to throw a stronger argument.
“If you’re going to go back, go back alone. I want to see the arts here today.”
He looked at me disapprovingly. I looked him straight in the eye. He sighed lightly. Was the plan successful?
“You’ll have to see it yourself, then. I’m going back.”
Tybalt turned and walked away, his back still to me. He was quite tolerant of me, his cousin, to accompany me, though he didn’t want to come to this art museum. But that tolerance couldn’t overcome his hatred for Montague.
The plan was a failure. I walked toward Romeo. I didn’t want to face him, but since I had summoned him for the plan, it was my duty to inform him of the failure and send him back.
“Romeo.”
“You called me first.”
Romeo looked thrilled at my call. I had to fight to keep a straight face. The Romeo I knew now was a bit creepy, and I was deeply disappointed that my heart was still beating.
It was all because of the magic. I pulled myself together. Ignoring someone after making a request wasn’t proper etiquette. If it were only Romeo, I wouldn’t have bothered with etiquette, but now Mercutio was with him.
For the success of the ‘Hoping for a Friendship between Tybalt and Mercutio’ operation, I might need Mercutio’s help at any moment. It couldn’t hurt to show him around. I forced myself to smile back at Romeo.
“Tybalt has noticed, so I’m calling it a day.”
“It’s not as easy as I thought. But, Juliet, if there are obstacles you need to overcome, I’ll overcome them for you.”
Calm down, my heart.
I sincerely regretted my heart for beating like this. Why was I so moved by such a cheap line! Romeo seemed to think this operation was a trial for our love. In reality, it was a plan to break that love. I let out a shallow sigh.
“What’s going on?”
As we whispered, Mercury loomed over us. I flashed him a graceful smile, as if I hadn’t just sighed.
“Hello, Mr. Mercutio.”
In response to my greeting, Mercutio nodded with a somewhat awkward expression. Well, he had witnessed me ignoring Romeo and entering the mansion last time. Suddenly appearing and speaking to Romeo might make me look strange. Without a decent excuse, I kept my smile and remained silent.
“Since we’ve met, why not have Juliet join us for the exhibition, Mercutio?”
Taking advantage of my silence, Romeo took the lead. Even though I had just said I had to go.
“No, I was just about to leave, so you two can enjoy it together.”
I said to Mercutio without giving Romeo a glance. Mercutio, caught in the middle, narrowed his eyes in confusion.
“Juliet, don’t say that…”
“Juliet?”
Romeo was about to grab me when someone called my name.
“William?”
It was William, and he looked as happy as a puppy welcoming its owner. Every time we met, his gaze towards me became more fervent. It felt like I could even see non-existent ears and a wagging tail.
“What brings you here?”
“I came here to get inspiration because my writing isn’t going well. I thought seeing some good artwork might stimulate me. What about you, Juliet?”
“She came to see me.”
Romeo interjected. Only then did William turn his gaze to look at Romeo beside me. His previously smiling face hardened. It seemed as if his vigorously wagging tail suddenly dropped.
“Juliet, would you like to introduce us?”
Romeo asked me, and his gaze persistently focused on William. I had no choice but to open my mouth.
“This is William. William Shakespeare. And William, this is Romeo Montague.”
“William Shakespeare? Didn’t you say he just returned home not long ago? Have you become so close to address him by his first name?”
Romeo fired a barrage of questions at me. In his jealousy, Romeo didn’t realize how rude he was being.
“Hello, I’m William Shakespeare.”
William reached out his hand to Romeo first. Only then did Romeo realize his mistake and shook hands.
“Pardon me, sir. I’m Romeo Montague.”
As soon as Romeo finished his greeting, without a moment’s hesitation, both of them let go of each other’s hands. It was as if they didn’t want to be in contact for another second.
“Juliet, did you come to the art museum with Mr. Montague?”
William asked me cautiously. There was something earnest in his gaze.
“No. We just happened to run into each other. We were just exchanging greetings and about to part ways.”
William’s face blossomed at my answer, while Romeo’s face was gradually contorting. He seemed to want to argue back, his lips twitching as if wanting to say something, but in the end, he closed his mouth, seemingly conscious of Mercutio beside him.
“Then, would you like to join me in exploring the museum?”
William asked me.I could see him swallowing nervously. The more I looked at him, the more he seemed like a puppy.
Going with William wasn’t a bad choice. Despite my lack of confidence in my success rate, I hadn’t given up on my plan to seduce William just yet. For the sake of my survival, I had to try anything that had even a slight chance. Besides, William was steadily increasing his liking for me every time we met.
He hadn’t taken any particular action, but considering the cost-effectiveness, it wasn’t a bad deal. We could talk about the downside of the tragedy.
“Juliet plans to explore the museum with me.”
I was about to nod, but Romeo intervened before I could. I looked at him in disbelief. Without blinking an eye, he stared only at William.
“I thought Juliet said you were just about to part ways.”
William replied, his tone unusually cold compared to usual. It was fascinating to see the man who usually looked like a puppy stand his ground.
“I was about to suggest continuing together right after finishing greetings. That is, until you, Mr. Shakespeare appeared.”
Technically, Romeo had already asked, and I had declined.
The atmosphere was getting murderous. I looked around for a way out. Temptation is all well and good, but I couldn’t stand this atmosphere that felt like it should scream, ‘Stop fighting for me!’, but I couldn’t see a way out.
Mercutio had already taken a few steps away, pretending not to be part of the group. I slowly took a step backward. Sensing my attempt to escape, the two men followed me.
“Juliet, where are you going?”
“Let’s continue exploring the museum together.”
A cold sweat broke out on my back as the two men got closer and closer. I continued to backpedal. My brain understood that I wasn’t in a position to run, but my body wasn’t cooperating. I just wanted to get out of this situation.
“Ah!”
“Juliet!”
As I kept walking backwards, I eventually tripped over something and fell. The pain shot through my backside and waist as I hit the ground. It hurt a lot, and it was even more embarrassing. What a situation to be in at an art museum. I decided that I shouldn’t step this way for a while.
But the two men who should have rushed to help me were strangely silent. I lifted my head and looked at them. They were staring at something as if they were entranced.
I turned my head to see what they were looking at, but I couldn’t see anything. When I looked back at the two men, they were now gazing intensely at each other, their eyes filled with a different kind of passion than before.
Confused, I turned my head once more to see what had caught their attention. It was then that I realized there was a painting right behind me
It was the Masterpiece “Friendship.”