Romeo and Juliet

c h a p t e r f o u r

The cast of East Highs beauty and the beast stood in the costume room of North High, all pretty impressed with how they had performed under so much pressure. If that had been so easy they could only assume that the show would be the best it could ever be. After being stood there for a minute, River quickly noticed that she had left her phone in the auditorium and told her friends she would back in a few minutes and not to leave without her. She made her way through to the auditorium, coming out through the side of the stage. The curtains were still open and the lights were still shining as she looked around at the set they had. If only her school could produce something this spectacular, then everyone would see them for who they were.
"Are you okay?" She hears a french accent ask and she turns to see the boy from earlier walking up to her on stage.
"Yeah sorry I just left my phone" she says and he nods but neither of them make a move.
"I'm Antoine as you may have heard earlier and you're Joni?" He asks which causes the girl to giggle slightly as she shakes her head.
"No, I'm River, River Maxwell but I was named after the song by Joni Mitchell so Carlos calls me that" she tells him and he nods, understanding her now.
"Well River, you were amazing out there, I didn't realise I would have so much competition for our character but you deserve the recognition and I can only assume you are playing the understudy of the princess with the way you look and were singing with the redhead up there" he compliments and the girl feels her heart jump in happiness.
She had spent so much time worrying about how she would be better than him and now she could see that they were of equal level.
"You know, if we weren't rivalling schools, I would have suggested we could've been the beauty and beast of this musical" he tells her and she smiles softly.
She didn't want to admit it, but she was charmed by the french student and could easily see herself enjoying more of his company.
"Well I suppose that is why people like Romeo and Juliet existed" she whispers.
But he heard her and this too caused him to smile. The pair stood together for a while just discussing their role which River tried to hold back any information she had. She thought he was nice, but he was still her competition and she was not about to let him get ahead of her. The pair soon hear footsteps coming from the side and they turn to see Nini stood there looking a little upset.
"Riv we're going, come on" she says before she leans on the wall of the wing for her friend.
The girl nods and goes to grab her phone from the side of the stage before walking past Antoine who grabs her hand, causing her to turn back to him.
"I hope to see you again soon" he tells her before raising her hand to his lips where he plants a kiss on her knuckles.
The girl blushes deeply before he lets go and she makes her way off the stage to Nini who was giving her a look of amusement.
"So what was that?" She teasingly asks.
"Not a word" she whispers as they make their way back to the group and start to head off through the school.
The couples walked together whilst River made her way forwards with Seb and Carlos, happy at what they had done that day.

•••

Ricky unlocked the apartment door as him and River made their way into his home. They were still living off of the high from today but the girl knew that Ricky was suffering from how popular Nini's song had gotten since he wasn't too sure on how he felt about the lyrics. She decided she would be nice to her best friend this once since he was feeling bad and said something she rarely ever did.
"You can choose the movie tonight"
"What's wrong?" He immediately asks which makes her roll her eyes.
"It's obvious you're not doing okay and so I'm being nice so that you feel better" she says giving him a smile.
"Well thank you, that means we'll be watching clueless again"
"Ugh seriously?" River asks annoyed but immediately smirks to herself after saying it.
She hadn't told Ricky that it was one of her favourite movies of all time and so always got the enjoyment out of it.
The pair made their way through the house to his room where the girl chucked her bag on his bed and went to his wardrobe, pulling at all the clothes.
"What are you doing?" Ricky asks and she replies not even looking away from her task.
"I left my hoodie in here last week and I want it back" she says as she grabs it and pulls it on.
She had fortunately gotten the time to change and was now back in her regular clothes, though she did miss the feeling of walking around in a dress. The pair then made their way to the lounge area where Ricky made himself comfortable on the couch, letting River be left with the task of getting snacks. She got a few bags and took over a can of juice for both of them before she made herself at home, putting her feet up on Ricks legs. The two of them had been having these sleepovers for years and though they would never admit it, they really loved the sibling bond that they had between them. They knew that growing up next door to each other was always going to have an impact on them and they were both so glad that they could call each other family. River shifts her gaze to the boy and smiles before she nudges him with her foot which makes him flick it with his fingers making her gasp.
"I hate you! (I love you)"
"I hate you more (I love you more)"
The two comments let the other one know what they meant and they smiled as they settled down to watch the movie. They both sang along quietly to the soundtrack before Ricky paused it to start up a conversation with his best friend.
"Oh Rick, really? Right at the bit where Cher is about to realise her true feelings?" She asks before seeing him already looking at her.
"What was that with the french boy today?" He asks and she just shrugs.
"I don't know, just a heat of the moment thing I guess, it's not like I'm in love with him"
"Yeah but would it kill you to actually like someone that way for once?" He asks the girl and she rolls her eyes.
"Feelings ain't it Ricky and even if I did like him, which I'm not saying I do, he goes to our rival school, he is literally my competition and I can't go making myself vulnerable" she says before noticing a notification flash up on her screen making her quickly turn of her phone.
Ricky eyes her suspiciously. He knew that the girl had always been a bit off when it came to romance but he really hoped she would find someone good. He sighed before he put the movie back on and the girl smiled as she started saying the lines along with the girl on the screen. She could clearly see where Cher was coming from. If she had a Paul Rudd in her life, she would also be head over heels in love with him. They spent the rest of the night watching movies such as, thirteen going on thirty and ten things I hate about you which both made River cry. Rickys dad came home later with takeaway and so had spent the night around the small kitchen table making jokes and bringing up old memories. They had laughed and River had managed to dry her tears off from the movies. The three stayed up for a while before Mike decided he was going to bed, wishing both the kids a good nights sleep.
"Alright, I want the bed tonight" They both say as soon as his dad left the room.
Both groaned out in annoyance, hating when they got to this disagreement.
"We'll just put pillows in the middle as I'm assuming neither of us really want to give up the comfort" she sighs and he nods as the pair of them go and get ready for bed before getting under the duvet.
Once River knows Ricky is asleep, she pulls out her phone and stares at the messages on her Instagram wondering what she should do.

•••

Antoine: hey
Antoine: I'm sorry to bother you
Antoine: I can't stop thinking about you

•••

The girl stared at the messages from earlier and bit her lip. She had seen on the bus that he had started following her and had liked her recent picture. She wondered if he had been tempted to comment on it but told herself she was being silly. Now she was staring at words from someone she hated merely a week ago and felt her heart racing with joy. She hadn't felt this for a person before but from what Ricky had described, it really meant that she was crushing on this boy and so with that in mind, she didn't think much harm could come from a little friendly text. She could only imagine the horror on her friends faces if they ever found out but part of her liked the risk. There was this form of excitement within her that told her to go for it and so she sent him a message before she placed her phone face down on the table next to her and closed her eyes, eager to get a full nights sleep after all the excitement she had faced today.

•••

River: neither can i

•••

A/N: this was just a cute little filler chapter as I want to make sure I can develop the characters and their relationships <3