Julie

I wake up to someone shifting beside me on the bed.

And that very thought startles me.

Some one is on my bed!!

But then relief fills me when I realise that I'm at Ryan's place. This is most probably Ryan's bed. And so he's the one who is sleeping behind me—

Wait! Ryan's bed?? My cheeks instantly heat up on the realisation. But I fell asleep on the couch! He.... carried me here...?

I turn my head towards him to find him right behind me. My hair obscure my vision but I move them away from my face. His breath fans my face and, despite the light morning breeze entering through the window, ruffling the curtains, it becomes too hot in the room.

He's sleeping shirtless on his stomach, one arm on the side of his head, other right beside my waist as if he'd been holding me. His hair is like someone's been tugging at it. His expression is relaxed and his breath is steady. His mouth is slightly parting, showing a bit of his front teeth. His scent fills the room and I can't help it.

I want to capture this moment.

I quietly get out of bed, trying not to wake Ryan up, and grab my bag to pull out my sketch pad. I bought all five of my sketching pencils and I'm thankful I did. This is a sight I'd rather not miss.

I sit quietly back on the bed and angle my self to get the full view. Sleeping shirtless Ryan is so beautiful it's breathtaking. And the morning light peaking in through the window, casting a shadow over him, makes it more attractive... if it's possible.

Ryan sleeps like a child while I sketch him. I'm trying my best to get every line, every curve properly on the paper. My pencil glides along the rough paper, as I lift my eyes again and again to his smooth back muscles, his jawline, now more defined because of the lighting, his arms and his hands. I remember those arms snaking around me last night, pulling me closer to him. His fingers played with my hair as I layer my head on his shoulder. I could feel it was unconscious movement, he didn't know he was doing any of it, but the butterflies in my stomach didn't let me not feel it.

I have to refrain myself, now, from gliding my hand over his skin, because I fear that my touch would wake him up. I unconsciously bite my lip as I shade his back, trying to make it look as smooth and enchanting as I see it in front of me, and when I realise this, my cheeks become hotter. I'm sure they're hot pink right now. Thank goodness Ryan is asleep, otherwise he'd have teased me for it.

Two hours later, the sketch is completed. The shadows have moved from where they were before but it doesn't matter. The sketch is just like I wish it would be. I admire my work by moving a finger over it. I've tried my best to capture every groove, every shadow. It's captivating. But still, I know, this sketch is nothing as compared to the Adonis sleeping right in front of me. A sketch can never do justice with him. He's so much more than just this.

I still feel the warmth of his mouth where he kissed my head last night when I snuggled up next to him. The way he put his arm around me made me feel safe and comfortable, just like at home. This sketch can not do that.

I put my sketch book back in my bag, and put it beside the bed on the floor. Then I lay back down beside him. I should be getting out of bed, brush my teeth and hair, but I don't want to. His scent is enchanting, his presence is petrifying. I just want to stay here with him. To watch him sleep peacefully like he is right now.

But my movements were too jerky. The instant my head hits the pillow, Ryan moves and then the next second, I'm trapped under is arm over my stomach and a leg over my legs, his head on my shoulder taking in a deep breath.

I can't breathe....

"G'Morning Juliet" he mumbles.

Juliet? I think to my self. Did he really just say that? Or is it my stupid brain...

"Morning." I reply, unable to say anything else.

Juliet.... his words echo in my head. No, he couldn't have said that. I only imagined it.

"Did you sleep well last night?" I can feel his smile near the crook of my neck.

"I did."  I can't help this constant blush on my cheeks. I did sleep well.

Ryan lifts his head and looks at me, his eyes still sleepy.

Too close... says my brain.

But it's ok. Replies my heart.

And so I don't push him away.

"Me too" he says, smiling. I expect him to kiss me right now. His eyes say he wants to. But then he rolls back, yawning and stretching his arms over his head like a kid.

Stupid Julia.... I think to my self.

I sit up and watch him look at me with a smile on his face. Then something flashes in his eyes and he gets up, telling me to hold still.

"What?" I ask, as he rushes out of bed to pull a box out of his closet. There is a victory smile on his face as he sets it down in front of me on the bed and pulls out a camera.

"I hope it works." He mumbles, grabbing his wallet from the night stand and pulling out a memory chip from it. He puts it in the little camera and then takes a pic of me.

"Your hair looks black" he pouts. I laugh and sit cross legged as he fidgets with the controls. He sits down on the bed and I place my hand under my chin to look at his working face. It still looks sleepy, but he's serious about getting the pic right. Soon his smile his back again.

"I think this camera is just too old." He says. "Its three years old. But it'll do." Then he turns to me.

"Come on, Jules" he says. "Say Constantine"

"Constantine?" I laugh and he picks takes that exact moment to take the pic.

"Hmm.." he examines his work "your hair is still black. But I like it" he grins. And then tosses the camera onto the bed.

"I'm glad you do." I tell him, still laughing as he goes back to his closet and pulls out a towel.

"You can go first." He tells me, handing it to me.

Go.... then I remember, I haven't even washed my face!

Ryan picks the camera up again and sits down on the bed.

That's so sweet of him. I think to my self. He's so adorable!

I feel like I kissing him right now. But then I remember that I haven't brushed. So, I accept his offer.

I'll surely kiss him after that. I tell my self.

Ryan

I love Julia... I think to my self when I come down into the kitchen to find Julia and mom, looking like they're going to make breakfast.

Yesterday when she looked at mom after she hugged her, Julia had an expression on her face which said 'I love this'. Maybe because she suddenly missed her mother. But that smile on her face.... I want to see it every day.

"Hey mom!" I kiss her on the head and then resist doing the same with Julia. Julia looks at me with a grin which reminds of the five minutes out side my bathroom door, right after I came out to look for the shirt if forgotten to take in.

I swear it wasn't on purpose, I really did forget the shirt. But what happened then was simply amazing. Julia threw her arms around me and pulled me down into a scorching kiss. I was a bit afraid, I'll admit that. Mostly because last time Julia kissed me like that, she slapped me afterwards. But when nothing like that happened... well, who was I to stop her?

"You want breakfast, Ray?" My mom asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"What's available?" I ask her, leaning against the counter where I think a few minutes ago, mom and Julia were making—

"Pancakes" Julia tells me with a grin. "Anna taught me how to make pancakes. No more sandwiches in breakfast from now on."

Mom laughs at that.

Something about their smiles is.... wrong....

I wonder what...

"Well, that's amazing!" I look at the two of them, smiling yet looking for clues.

Then I see it, as Julia grabs the cloth to wipe the counter behind me, mom gives me a look which says are you insane?

That can only mean one thing. Mom and dad had a talk. Mom is just very jolly. Thats why she isn't showing it to Julia that her presence is bothersome. My mom would never let anything which upsets my dad stay in this house.

And Roland Garfield's daughter?

Definitely not an exception.

"Actually mom," I push my self away from the counter, grabbing a glass to fill it with some water, "I was thinking about having breakfast outside."

Mom raised an eyebrow at me, as she were asking a date?

"I'm kinda missing having breakfast from aunt Jill's." I add to ensure mom that I'm gonna make it a date....Even though I want to.

"Who's aunt Jill?" Julia asks, raising her eyebrow, looking between Mom and I.

Her curiosity sounds mire like ooh! I wanna meet Jill so that I can get away from Anna

Seriously, with that raised eyebrow, they would've looked like mother-daughter if mom still had her brown hair. But mom likes her hair blonde.

"She's mom's old friend" I tell her. "Owns the best breakfast place in town. You'd love the food there."

"Oh" she says, her smile returning to her lips. "I'll just go touch up my makeup then."

She says, leaving as if escaping the room.

What just happened?

"Don't hurt your head while thinking Ray." Mom pats my shoulder. "We had a talk."

Oh... I realise. So that's why Julia is acting weird.

"What did you say?" I ask her, as she pulls a chair from the dinning table and sits down.

"I didn't." She replies.

I place the glass I've been holding, still empty, on the counter.

"What do you mean?"

"She asked me," mom explains, waving her hand in the air. "if I knew her mom. And I told her I did. I told her every thing from how your dad knows Garfield, to how I know her mom."

What...? That means— oh no!

"What did she say?" I manage to ask mom, pulling a chair from across her. "What did Jules say?"

She sighs.

"She only asked one thing." Mom tells me, crossing her arms in front of her on the table. "She asked if that was the reason your dad was glaring at her over dinner."

Unconsciously, my hand goes to my hair, tugging lightly at it.

Ok. So Jules knows. I shouldn't have brought her here. This isn't good. She might think I brought her hair too—

"Take her out Ray." Mom says. "Take her out of this house. Your dad wakes up in a while. I don't want him to get mad again."

"Again?" I ask, unable to not notice the word.

Mom sighs again.

"Yes. Again." She nods. "He was mad last night. I convinced him a bit. That Julia is a guest. And is definitely not Ronald. He...." Mom looks for a word "he said he won't let the girl know he hates her presence. I told him that wasn't enough. And he agreed to let her at the Barbecue tonight—"

"Right." I nod.

"— But Idont think," Mom continues, "that he can stand her presence too long. Take her outside. Show her around Ryan. That will be better for both of them."

I nod again. Mom is right. I'll take Julia to the park after breakfast.. but that won't keep us busy for long... how—

"Can you do the grocery while you're away?" Mom cuts in, standing up and making her way to the fridge. "Make yourself useful, you know?"

I look up in time to catch her grinning at me. Groceries... that will surely keep us busy.

"Sure." I nod. "Where's the list?"

Mom beams at me. "Here." She picks up a piece of paper from on top of the fridge. "Its a bit long, but I think you can manage it."

I smile and take it from her.

"I can". I surely will. And I'll make sure that when we come back, Julia is cheered up again.

Anna

Fifteen minutes have passed since Ray left with his friend, but I still haven't left the kitchen. Raphael isn't up yet, and Sophie is locked in her room, listening to loud music while she's doing whatever it is she's doing.

I sigh, crossing my arms on the table in front of me, and resting my chin on top of them. Last night at the dinner table, the look Raphael gave me reminded me of the boy in high school whom every one thought was so rude. But only I knew what Raphael Hunt truly was. Because he decided to show me who he was.

High school junior year, the year when he finally asked me out. I was so focused on my studies then, that I had turned him down. Him, and Ron. Ronald Garfield, the richest kid we knew. He was only famous because of his family money and his brain.

I wasn't ready for a relationship. I was focusing on my studies. Ans even if I was, I wouldn't have been able to choose.

They were both clever, Ron and Raphael. The only problem was, Raphael didn't show he was clever. He would never boast about his high IQ level, or his ability to access people in one meeting. Raphael would show people he was mean and rude so that he didn't have to deal with him.

Ron didn't . He used to get high on his fame. He lived being cherished, loved seeing his orders being followed, and also loved seeing the destruction of those who didn't follow his orders.

And the two despised each other's presence, abhorred even a single mention of each other's name.

And then...

At the start of senior year, Raphael and I ended up in the same class. We had four same classes. And he helped me in each one of them. He told me he had liked me and still did. He was so nice to me, like a proper gentleman. We used to study together, because I had asked him to help me out. He would hold the door for me when we'd sit in the cafeteria to discuss something, he'd pull back my chair at the library for me to sit, he'd share his food with me, let me have the first bite, he bought me books when I needed them— in short, he truly showed me that he loved me.

Ron did too.

He asked me out to parties. Trying to be polite, I never said no. Ron, bought me gifts, dresses, shoes, dinners, everything he could get me.

But then... prom came around.

Both of them asked me out. I don't why. Were all the other girls dead or something? But what could I do?

It became hard for me to choose. In the end, I went with Ron. He bought me the finest dress, the finest shoes. He picked me up from my houses in his Mercedes Benz.... but after one dance, I felt like I had had enough.

It was all glitter.... all that glitter could never have been gold.

I left him right there and sought out Raphael and the rest of the evening was like too good to be true.

It didn't matter if Raphael didn't have a mansion, he didn't but me Louis Vuittons, he didn't take me to fancy dinners in posh hotels.... the look in his eyes when he looked at me while sitting with a simple picnic basket in a park on the grass was enough. The smile which shone in his eyes when ever he said my name. That was all I wanted.... all I needed.

And that look in Ryan's eyes when he looked at Julia yesterday....

I sigh through my nose agin.

....It was the same Raphael had for me.

I had seen it. The affection, the love that shimmered in his eyes when he looked at her, that dripped from each and every word he said to Julia. And I love my son for being like that. I loved him for being in love like that.

There is only one problem. She's a Garfield.

Julia is a very nice girl. I can see it. She's nice, and polite. But being a Garfield, she must've been pampered and cherished. She's an only child who grew up in a mansion playing with her father's money all her life. How will she feel easy with Ryan, a person who is not like that at all. He can't give her emeralds and rubies for every monthly anniversary. He can't buy her a new dress for every single occasion.

Raphael fears the same thing. He told me as much last night, while I combed his hair with my fingers. He was worried for our son. He was worried that Ryan would not be able to handle it. So he wanted him to end it now, before it became too late for both of them.

I sit up straight in my chair, and rub a hand over my face.

I hope our fears don't come true. This... this Romeo and Juliet they're trying to recreate in real life...

....I hope it doesn't end the way Shakespeare ended his.

~~~~~~~~~~

A/n: oh wow. A 2939 words long filler chapter, after what seems like a while month! I dunno if I'm proud of my self or not. lol

This chapter's credit goes to three people.cadmiumtroops25 , outtanowhere_ and, tigerTS23 .

They're the best people in the world. And they are the one who motivated me enough to write... after I visited Uncle Shakespeare thrice. ^^'

How do you like Anna's story? What do you think will happen? Lemme know in the comments. Don't forget to vote.

I hope you enjoyed (: