Why I Hate Romeo and Juliet

Why I Hate Romeo and Juliet - Chapter One

Why I hate Romeo and Juliet

 

Chapter One

A forewarning: I’m about to say ‘love’ a whole hell of a lot.

I’m not really a bitter old crone who hates everything. I just don’t like love. I don’t even like to say it. The word itself disgusts me. Love: it’s awful. For a while, I thought it was just in high school that people were all so sickeningly lovey-dovey. Boyfriends walking their girlfriends to class, holding hands – everything. It all just made me want to hurl.

It’d gotten really bad when my best friends fell into it.

That was another thing! People say they’ve fallen in love like it’s beautiful and majestic, involuntary action. It isn’t. Everyone else’s just too blind to see it. Love was blind, and it wasn’t just in high school.

Every love story, love song, quote, it all proves my point. It never ends happily. So why do we put ourselves through it? Why does Rose go with Jack? What makes Cinderella think she needs a prince? Why does Juliet follow Romeo?

Two out of those three stories end in death. The other one supposedly ends happily, but come one. Eventually one of them dies and throws the other into a depressing life as a widow. Nothing about loving someone ends happily.

Now don’t get me wrong – I would love people. I’d love my friends, no matter how stupid I thought they were for falling into the trap. I loved my Mom and Dad. I’d loved plenty of people. I would just never fall in love with someone.

Romantic love was just a sneaky way of hurting yourself, and I was not a masochist. 

___

“Guess what, Hazel!” Jane shouted, running up to me. “Jordan said he loved me!”

I was lying down in the cool grass of the park. It was vacant of elementary school children who were already busy learning their 1, 2, and 3’s and A, B, C's, or whatever the hell they do in elementary school. Kids were probably home on outrageously early curfews set by outrageously protective parents. At those times, I began to be grateful that my Dad worked so many hours.

Jane took a seat next to me, so I didn't roll my eyes as I wanted to. I needed to be the supportive friend. “He did?”

“Yeah, I know, I know, it’s only been a month, and I know how you are about this kind of stuff, but just put that aside and be happy for me?” She asked, looking at me hopefully.

The last thing I wanted was for Jane to get hurt, but I decided a long time ago to not pull my friends into my crazy notions. Whatever mistakes she was going to make, she would – regardless of what I thought. It was none of my business anyway – no matter how much I wanted to protect her.

I nodded, sighing. “Sure.”

“Thank you! I like him so much, Haze, you have no idea.”

I did have an idea though. I was pretty sure Jane was just going through the puppy-love stage. You know, where she doesn’t even know what’s happening, but it’s enough to send her into a fit of giggles. I could see it in her eyes – they were already glassy with some sort of hope that this was the guy. Which was ridiculous; we were only in high school.

I wasn’t judging Jane. She wasn’t any less of a person to me because of Jordan. (And then I winced. Jane and Jordan - how terrible was that?). But Jane was still my friend, and I didn’t have a place to judge her when she didn’t judge me for my views.