By Any Other Name: A Deliciously Dark Retelling of Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare After Dark) by Kate King
Author:Kate King [King, Kate]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-06-06T16:00:00+00:00
Chapter Fourteen
ROMAN
PRESENT
For the first time in longer than I care to remember, I wake up early.
Itâs not the kind of âearlyâ Iâve started to convince myself is good enoughâ9:00AM instead of 12:00PM, like itâs some grand achievement to defeat the afternoon. Itâs not like when I wake up at 5:00AM, anxious and confused, before falling back asleep until 1:00PM, wondering if I was ever awake to begin with. No, today Iâm up by 7:00AM, and the ever-present fog in my mind is lessened.
That is, until I realize I have no idea what to do with myself at this hour.
I donât know what kind of person is awake at 7:00AM, but itâs not me. The time brings to mind old ladies gardening, good church-going citizens, early morning joggers, and parents with small children. While I am none of those things, renouncing them completely is also a bit much. I am one step away from claiming to be raised and molded by the darkness, and even to myself that sounds both over dramatic and absurd.
This afternoon, Iâll begin the first stage of the rest of my life. The first scene of my sequel, where Etta is my heroine, but the first page of that story starts at 3:00PM, when Iâll meet with Professor Abram after my lecture to ask about Order marriage ceremonies.
Yesterday afternoon, once Etta had come apart screaming against my tongue and weâd agreed on the broad strokes of the plan, she pulled her clothes back on and went back to business, explaining to me the details of how she wanted to move forward. In a way, I was wrong. She had thought a lot of it thoughâstarting with how, if at all possible, we should avoid having Councilman Lawrence perform the ceremony.
Iâm just completing my third lap back and forth between my room and the kitchen when the front door opens. I look up, unsurprised to see Bennet walking in, pulling earbuds from his ears. He is an early morning runnerâitâs astounding we get along.
He sees me, and jumps, eyes going wide. âWhat the fuck.â Itâs neither a question nor a true exclamationâjust a kind of loud statement. Like heâs not quite able to process what heâs seeing. âWhat are you doing?â
I laugh. âNothing?â
He seems more alarmed by my laugh even than my presence and I wonder if thatâs indicative of my mood lately, or my mood this morning. Am I usually miserable, or especially happy today? Both?
âNo, really.â He kicks off his muddy sneakers by the door and crosses the kitchen, pulling out a chair. âWhat are you doing?â
âJust thinking.â I cross to the fridge and pull it open. Inside thereâs a stark contrast between my cousinâs food and mine. Iâm subsisting on takeout and protein shakes, while Bennet actually cooks. There are heaps of ingredients in here I havenât bothered to notice in months. I pull my head back out of the fridge. âCan I use your eggs?â
He blinks, surprised. âSure. Take whatever you want.â
I take him
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