Juliet was impatient for the night to come. It seemed that the day would go on forever. She wished the god of the sun would whip his horses so that they would carry him faster to the distant west and allow night to fall like a thick curtain. Then her husband could come to her in secret. Who needed daylight? Lovers didn't: their own beauty was light enough to see by. In any case, if night is the best time for it. She sat in her room, marveling at how long a day can be. She thought about what would happen when the night finally fell and Romeo was with her: how she would give herself to him and by so doing, win him forever. The darkness would hide her blushes when they made love. She went to the window and gazed out over the orchard where Romeo had stood. It was so frustrating:;she had bought a house of love but not yet taken possession of it – she was like some brand new item that hadn't yet been used. Oh, what tedium: she felt like a child on the night before an important day who has all her new clothes lined up but wasn't allowed to wear them until morning. Her Nurse came slowly up the path from the gate. Yes, she had the rope ladder. But she didn't look very happy. Perhaps she was tired. Juliet left her room, ran as fast as she could -through the halls and down the stairs – and reached the Nurse before she got to the door.
'Hello Nurse,' she said. 'What have you got there? The rope ladder that Romeo asked you to get?'
'Yes . , . yes!' said the Nurse, 'The rope ladder.' Her voice was dull. She sat down on a bench and dropped the ladder. She didn't look at Juliet: she just shook her head slowly and began wringing her hands.
'Oh dear, ' said Juliet 'What's wrong? Why are you wringing your hands?'
'Oh no, oh no,' said the Nurse, 'He's dead, he's dead, he's dead. It's all over – all over, May God help us, he's gone, he's killed, he's dead.'
Juliet went cold. Did she mean Romeo? She was numb, 'Can heaven be so hostile?' she said,
'No,' said the Nurse. 'But Romeo can. Oh Romeo, Romeo. Who would have thought it? Romeo!'
'What kind of monster are you, saying such things?' said Juliet. 'Torturing me like this? Has Romeo killed himself? Just say yes or no.'
The Nurse still didn't look up. 'I saw the wound with my own eyes. Right here,' She placed her hand on her breast. 'A pitiful corpse, a blood drenched pitiful corpse. It was pale, pale as ashes, and all covered in blood. I fainted when I saw it.'
Juliet lay on the ground and sobbed. Her heart was. broken. She never wanted to open her eyes again. She wanted to die right there and then and be buried in the same coffin as Romeo.
'Tybalt, Tybalt,' wailed the Nurse, 'The best friend I had. O dear Tybalt! good Tybalt. I never thought I'd live to see you dead.'
Juliet sat up. 'Why are you contradicting yourself?' she said, 'Is Romeo killed? And is Tybalt also dead? Both my beloved cousin and my even more beloved husband? Then come on doomsday, sound your trumpet, because who is alive if those two are dead?'
'Tybalt is dead and Romeo banished,' said the Nurse. 'That Romeo who killed Tybalt – he's banished.'
'Oh God!' shrieked Juliet, 'Did Romeo kill Tybalt?'
'He did, he did, oh God help us, he did,' sobbed the Nurse.
'I can't believe it!,' exclaimed Juliet. 'Oh, the scoundrel. A snake's heart hidden by a handsome face! Did ever such a beautiful cave harbour such a dragon? A beautiful monster! An angelic devil, Evil in the clothes of good – just the opposite of what he seemed. I can't believe that hypocrisy could live in such a gorgeous palace!'
'No,' said the Nurse, 'You can't trust any man: they're all liars, all hypocrites, 'Huh, where's Peter? Bring me some brandy! All this sorrow is aging me. Shame on Romeo.'
Juliet leapt to her feet. Her eyes flashed as she shook her finger at the Nurse, 'I hope your tongue is blistered for saying that!' she cried, 'There's no shame on Romeo! Oh what a beast I was to criticize him!'
'Are you going to speak well of the man who killed your cousin?'
'Do you want me to speak badly of the man who is my husband?' said Juliet. 'Oh, my poor husband. Who will support you when I, your wife of three hours, abandons you?' She shook her head sadly. 'But why, scoundrel, did you kill my cousin?'
Peter brought a flask of brandy and the Nurse grabbed it and waved him away.
Juliet had sat down on the grass again. 'If he hadn't killed Tybalt that scoundrel Tybalt would have killed him,' she said. 'Why am I crying? My husband is alive. Tybalt wanted to kill him but Tybalt's dead now – the villain who wanted to kill my husband. It's all good news. So why am I crying? There is something you said, Nurse, that's worse than Tybalt 's death. I wish I could forget it but it's haunting me. 'Tybalt is dead, and Romeo banished, you said, Nurse. That 'banished', that one word 'banished' is like the death of ten thousand Tybalts. Tybalt 's death would have been bad enough if it had ended there. But Romeo's world's been destroyed. The word 'banished' is the worst sounding word in our language. Where are my parents, Nurse?'
'They're crying over Tybalt 's body. Do you want to go to them? I'll take you.'
'Are they washing his wounds with tears? I've got more tears for Romeo's banishment than they'll ever have for Tybalt 's death. Take the rope ladder away. Romeo's already gone.' She stood up. 'I'm going to bed. And I'll die there with death as my lover instead of Romeo.'
The Nurse put her arm around Juliet. 'That's right. Go to your room. I'll try and find Romeo. I think I know where he is. Listen, Love! Romeo will be here tonight. I'll make sure of that. I'll go to him: he's hiding at Friar Lawrence's chapel.'
'Oh find him,' said Juliet. 'Give him this ring and tell him to come to me.'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
'Romeo!' Come out of there. Come out.' Friar Lawrence had just returned from Verona, dismayed at the events there that afternoon, He stood in front of the stone altar before which he had married the young couple. Romeo had crawled underneath it and he lay now, pressing himself into the darkest corner.
'You poor fellow,' said Friar Lawrence. 'So overwhelmed by unhappiness.'
Romeo edged out slowly, His face was pale. He did not get up. 'Father, have you any news? What is the Prince's sentence? What's going to happen to me?'
'It's not so bad,' said the Friar, 'I've brought you news of the sentence.'
'What could be 'not so bad' about a death sentence?'
'A less harsh sentence: not death but banishment.'
'Banishment?' Romeo rose to his knees and clutched the Friar's robes. 'Oh be merciful, Father. Say 'death'. Exile is far more terrifying to me than death. Don't say 'banishment'.'
'You've been banished from Verona. That's all. Be grateful. Verona's not everything: the world's a big place.'
'There's nothing beyond the walls of Verona,' said Romeo. 'Only torture – hell itself. So banished means banished from the world, and that means death. 'Banished' is only another word for death.'
'Oh sinner,' said Friar Lawrence. 'You ungrateful boy.' You don't know how lucky you are. The law calls for your death but the kind Prince has taken your side and ignored the law: he's converted your sentence to banishment. He's being merciful and you can't see it.'
Romeo was crying. He flopped down again. 'Torture, not mercy. Heaven is here where Juliet is, and every cat and dog, and little mouse – every insignificant thing – can see her but I can't. Even flies have more rights than I have: they can touch her hand and kiss her lips. But I can't: I'm banished. Flies can do this but I have to abandon it: they are free men but I am banished. And you say it's better than death?' Romeo 's eyes were red and his cheeks were wet. 'Haven't you got some poison or any way of sudden death no matter how nasty? It would be better than banishment. Banished? Oh Friar, the damned use that word in hell. How can you have the heart – a priest, one who calls himself my friend – to hack at me with that word 'banished'?'
'You crazy, foolish young man, listen to me.' The Friar gripped his shoulders.
Romeo put his hands over his ears. 'Oh! you're going to talk about banishment again.'
'Be philosophical,' the Friar told him. It will comfort you even though you're banished.'
'There you are, Still going on about banishment. To hell with philosophy. Unless philosophy can make a Juliet, move a town, change a prince's mind, it's useless. So don't keep on!'
'Oh,' said the Friar. 'You won't listen. I see that madmen have no ears.'
'How could they when wise men have no eyes?'
'No,' said the Friar. 'I have to disagree with you. I will eventually persuade you.'
'Never! You can't talk about something you haven't felt,' said Romeo. 'Look here. If you were my age, and Juliet your love, and you had been married for only an hour and Tybalt had been murdered – in love like me and like me banished – then you could talk. You would also tear your hair and grovel on the ground like me, thinking of only one thing: your grave.'
There was a loud, rapid knocking on the door.
'Quick, ' said the Friar. 'Get up! Hide! Quick!'
'No,' said Romeo. 'I don 't care what happens to me, I'm not hiding unless I can lose myself in a mist made of my own groans.'
The knocking was louder now.
'Listen to that! Who's there? Get up, Romeo, they'll catch you!'
More knocking.
'Run to my study. And perhaps...' Friar Lawrence shook his head when Romeo refused to get up 'What stupidity is this?' He turned to the door. 'I'm coming, I'm coming!'
The knocking continued. The Friar hurried to the door and pressed his ear to it.
'Who's that? What do you want?'
'Let me in,' a voice called, 'And I'll tell you. The Lady Juliet sent me.'
The Friar slid the bolts back. 'Welcome, then,' he said.
'O holy Friar, O tell me holy Friar,' said the Nurse. 'Where 's my lady 's husband? Where 's Romeo?'
The Friar pointed to the interior of the chapel 'He's here, drunk with his own tears.'
'Oh, it's the same with Juliet,' said the Nurse. Just the same.' She followed the Friar to the altar where Romeo lay, distraught. 'She's. lying there just like that, blubbering and crying, crying and blubbering.' She jabbed Romeo with her toe. 'Get up. Get up if you're a man!' She bent down and took his hand. 'For Juliet's sake, get up.'
Romeo rose unsteadily to his feet. 'Nurse, Did you say Juliet's name? How is she? Doesn't she think I'm a murderer now that I've killed her cousin? Where is she? How is she? What does she say about the end of our love?'
'She doesn't say anything,' said the Nurse. 'She cries and cries – just throwing herself on her bed then getting up again, calling "Tybalt", then "Romeo", then falling on her bed again.'
'As if my name was like a bullet,' said Romeo. 'As though my name's hand had murdered her cousin.' He grabbed the Friar's arm. 'Please tell me Friar, whereabout in my body is my name? Tell me so that I can cut it out.' He pulled out his dagger. Both the Nurse and the Friar leapt at him, He struggled to get his hand free and tried to stab himself. The Friar got him in an arm lock and the Nurse snatched the dagger.
'What are you doing?' said the Friar, 'What kind of man are you? You look like a man but your tears are a woman's and your wild acts are an animal's. I'm surprised at you. I really thought you more grown up. Perhaps you've killed Tybalt but are you going to kill yourself too? And kill the wife who only lives for you?' The Friar's voice was raised, 'Why are you cursing your birth and heaven and earth? They're all part of you. Do you want to lose them all by killing yourself?'
The Friar could see that Romeo really wanted to die. He tried to reason with him, speaking fast, telling him that if he killed himself he would be sinning against the love he shared with Juliet as well as against himself, breaking his promise to look after her. 'What, man? Pull yourself together. Think about it. It's all positive. Juliet is alive – the one you want to die for. That's a plus. Tybalt wanted to kill you but you killed him instead. That's a plus. The law that condemned you to death became your friend and turned it to exile. Another plus.'
The Nurse was smiling, gazing at the Friar. Romeo had stopped crying and was listening with bowed head.
'You see?' said the Friar, 'It's all pluses. Happiness follows you and what do you do? You behave like an ungrateful, spoilt child. Be careful, my boy. People like that die miserable.'
He could see that he was getting through to Romeo at last. The young man was standing up properly now! even nodding at his words. The Nurse's hands were clasped as though in prayer.
'Go on,' continued the Friar, 'Go to Juliet, climb up to her room and comfort her.'
Romeo turned.
'Wait,' said the Friar, 'Make sure you don 't stay until the Watch goes on duty because then you won't be able to get away. Go to Mantua. That's where you're going to live until we get the chance to announce your marriage. We'll beg the Prince's pardon and you'll be able to come back. Joyfully. Go on Nurse. Run ahead and tell her to try and get everyone to go to bed early – which they'll probably do anyway because of their grief. Tell her Romeo is on his way.'
'Oh Lord!' said the Nurse. I could stand here all night listening to good advice like this. What it is to have an education! Here.' She held a ring out to Romeo. 'She told me to give this to you. Hurry now, because it's getting late.'
'I'm alright now.' Said Romeo when the Nurse had gone.
'Go on,' said the Friar. 'Good night. And listen. Either set off before the Watch comes or leave in disguise. Stay in Mantua. I'll keep you informed: I'll send your man as soon as there's any news.'