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❛ ᴏᴄᴇᴀɴ ᴇʏᴇꜱ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ ᴀ ᴋɪss ɪs
ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴀ ᴋɪss ꒱


❝ BONKERS ❞

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Juliet joined Shawn to meet up with Cory just as Topanga was leaving. "That's great, Cor. I'll see you later."

"See you later," the boy replied as his two best friends approached him.

"Cory, were you just talking to Topanga?" Shawn asked.

"Yeah, well, I was feeling a little chatty and, you know, even though we broke up we're still friends."

"Good for you, Cor," the redhead said happily.

"No, no, not 'good for you, Cor,'" Shawn objected immediately. "She's your ex! Let me spell that out for you: x!"

"I think it's great the Cory and Topanga are still friends," Juliet said with a frown. "Are you telling me that if we had dated and then broken up, you wouldn't want to be my friend anymore?" (She ignored the warmth that rushed to her face.)

"Uh— uh, no— no, that's not what I—" the dark-haired boy immediately tried to fix his mistake. "I'm just saying that's how it is for most people! Besides, I wouldn't break up with you." He finished with a note a finality, though he avoided the girl's eyes at the suppressed thought of actually dating her.

"Look, Shawn. Topanga and I aren't like other couples. We'd be like how you and Jules would've been."

"You're not a couple," Shawn reminded him, "and did you not listen to the hypocritical situation that just happened?"

"Hypothetical, Shawnie."

"Right."

"Whatever. I know."

"My point exactly."

"Then we agree," Cory said.

"No! I think we're saying the same thing."

Juliet smacked her hand to her forehead as Topanga returned. "Cory, I double-checked. We have to be there at three for the Promwear Fashion Fest."

"Oh, good," the redhead said, "I've got to let Jack know too. Hopefully his schedule can be cleared."

"Montacute?" Shawn questioned her accusingly. "Fashion Fest?"

"Yeah. Cory, Topanga, Jack and I are going to go together. Prom wear," Juliet explained.

"Isn't it great that we can still do things together?" Topanga asked happily as she leaned over to peck Cory on the cheek.

"Don't do that," the boy protested.

"I've always done that."

Once she'd left, Cory turned to Shawn. "Shawn, are you crying?"

"I think I lost you, man."

Juliet rolled her eyes. "I think it's a great sign of maturity that Cory and Topanga don't hate each other's guts, though I don't think they ever could."

"Thanks, Jules," the curly-haired boy said, "besides, I said I'd do this Fashion Fest thing when we were still going out. I mean, I can't bail on her."

"Yeah, you can. You've got to move on."

The girl's eyes narrowed at the dark-haired boy. "I'm glad you're still friends with Panga, Cor, but I think you are a little hung up on her."

"A little?" Shawn scoffed. Juliet ignored him.

"Quit your crying," Cory told his best friend before he turned to the redhead. "Jules, I'm just a guy in a tux walking down an aisle with his ex-girlfriend in a gown in front of the entire school. And you think I haven't moved on."

"Okay, Cor. If you're really over her, then you're ready to date other girls," Shawn told him.

"Well, I should say so."

"So you'd be up for a little double-date action?"

"Hey!"

"Montacute's banned from being in my space," Shawn said firmly.

"We don't need him," the curly-haired boy agreed before he added, "but what will you do, Shawn?"

"Oh, now this is the Cory I've always hoped for!"

Juliet huffed with annoyance and crossed her arms. She got it. Really, she did. Shawn had always been more protective of her feelings but this was almost ridiculous. She could make her own decisions, thank you very much.

"Well, fine," she told them, "I'll go on a date with Jack by myself."

"Absolutely not!"

"Shawn! He's my boyfriend!" the redhead exclaimed.

"Not a very good one. Now, as for Cory," he said dismissively before he looked around the hall. "Melissa, you wanna go on a date with Cory?"

"Sure," she answered.

"Alright, Cor, we just got you a date. What do you say?"

"You go."

🌎🌎🌎

"Hey," Jack said softly as he held the car door open for the red-haired girl. Juliet stood in front of him, dressed nicely for their night out.

"Hey," she replied, almost forcing herself to take a step forward to press a kiss to the boy's lips. She pulled away as soon as she could and slid into the car.

"Hi, John," she greeted the driver, who answered her in turn.

The ride was spent in mostly awkward silence as Juliet fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. When they arrived at the restaurant, she opened the door herself and got out, hesitating only a moment before she let Jack lead her into the upscale eatery.

After another long stretch of nothing while they waited for their food, Juliet finally tried asking a question "So, how's your job with your dad?"

Immediately, Jack made a face. "Terrible. I don't have a mind for banking at all and I don't know why he's insisting I do. I'm great with languages and pretty good with math but money and economics just. . . doesn't stick. It's exceptionally tedious and I don't know how I can spend the rest of my life doing this."

The redhead remained quiet, knowing that saying you could always leave wasn't an option. Jack wouldn't want to abandon his mother. The boy continued: "and now he's even more annoyed than usual since apparently his old banking arch-nemesis is back in town. I didn't even know that bankers had arch-nemesises. Uh, arch nemsesi? I don't know the plural for that. Anyway, he's been out late a lot to try and keep his reputation up— mostly at business meetings. I've attended a few and they're terribly boring. I don't even know why he's got a thing against Capelwood but—"

"Capelwood?" Juliet asked, finally interrupting the blonde's rant.

The boy's eyes widened slightly. "Uh, different Capelwood. He owns a bank, too, and is pretty much my dad's direct rival. They're in the same social sphere and everything. Apparently they had this rivalry all the way back in college."

"Are you sure? Capelwood isn't a common last name."

"Positive," the boy said with a nod. "Anyway, my dad's been even more cutthroat than usual, and that's saying something. That's why my schedule's been hectic, Ocean Eyes." Here, at least his tone was apologetic. "I don't mean to be so busy but my father doesn't really understand that I don't want to be a banker. Which reminds me— when was the Fashion Fest thing? I have to make sure I don't get something scheduled during it."

"Oh, uh, Saturday. Three o'clock," Juliet told him, still caught on to Capelwood. She'd have to look him up when she got home.

🌎🌎🌎

At lunch the next school day, Cory came up to Shawn and Juliet. "Hey, hey, hey, mi amigos."

"All you did was shake her hand?" Shawn asked with disbelief.

"How did you come up with that?"

"It's written all over your unkissed face." (Here, Juliet rolled her eyes.)

"Look, I was gonna kiss her, alright? I really wanted to. I mean, my lips were primed. My hand just got their first," Cory answered.

"You're never gonna be over Topanga until you kiss another girl," Shawn told him.

"And I will."

"Okay, but it's not gonna be Melissa because after last night she is never gonna want to see you again."

Melissa came over and said, "Cory, I'd like to see you again."

"Hey, Ocean Eyes, can I talk to you for a second?" Jack's voice followed close behind. The blond ignored Shawn's narrowed eyes as he focused his attention on the redhead, who turned to face him.

"Uh, sure?"

"Alone?" he asked with a glance at the dark-haired boy's suspicious expression.

"I guess." Juliet stood and followed him to the water fountain.

In front of her, Jack fidgeted slightly as he shifted from one foot to the other. "So, uh, about the Fashion Fest thing. Um, how important is it that we go?"

"Well, we'd look like jerks if we didn't show up so pretty important," Juliet said slowly as she gave him a skeptical look. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, uh, my dad's scheduled a last-minute board meeting on the weekend. Saturday. Two-thirty, to be precise. I won't get out until five," Jack explained, his eyes focused on his feet instead of hers.

"Oh," the redhead said in a quiet voice. While she hadn't necessarily been looking forward to the event with him, it would've been nice to do something different or to do something together since he was always busy now. "That's alright I suppose."

"Are you sure? I could try to talk my dad out of it," the blonde suggested.

Juliet immediately shook her head. "No, that's okay. He already doesn't like me—"

"He doesn't like most people," the boy said with a sigh. "I'm sorry, Ocean Eyes."

"Don't worry about it, Jack," she told the boy, giving him a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

They parted ways and the redhead returned to her table as Shawn was saying, "everything I've ever believed is wrong. I-I must try this what you call 'handshake.'"

"Hi Shawn," a girl— who had most likely been his recent date— said.

"Hi, Katie," Shawn greeted her in return. "Can I— can I shake your hand?"

The boy reached out to grasp the girl's hand and their arms moved up and down until Shawn pulled the girl in for a kiss. Juliet looked away as she felt the nausea return to her stomach. This was why she kept Jack as her boyfriend instead of breaking up with him.

🌎🌎🌎

Juliet sat on a stool as she watched Shawn play pool. She'd mostly frowned her way through dinner and hadn't spoken much all the evening. After missing one of his shots, her best friend finally put his pool stick down and turned to her. "Alright, Julie. What's wrong? Usually you like trying to beat me in pool even if you always lose. Now you don't even want to play."

"It's nothing," she tried, pulling a strand of red hair forward to fiddle with it.

"Yeah right," Shawn scoffed. He stepped forward until he could gently grasp her wrists and pull them away from her hair. "You know you can tell me if something's bothering you, right?" he asked in a much softer tone.

The redhead tried not to focus on the heat she felt from his fingers and instead forced herself to meet his eyes, hoping her face wasn't showing similar warmth. "Um, I think you'd make a big deal about it."

"Me? Make a big deal about it?" the boy asked with mock offence. "Of course I wouldn't!"

He was rewarded with a small, genuine smile before the girl sighed. "You promise you won't do anything?"

The boy hesitated before he nodded firmly, the desire to know what was wrong outweighing his instinct to "make a big deal about it."

"Well, um, it's about Jack."

"Montacute?" Shawn asked, his eyes narrowing. "What did he do?"

"Shawn. . ." Juliet warned him, not wanting to continue until the boy relaxed.

"I'm calm, I'm calm," he promised, releasing her wrists to run his fingers through his hair. He made an effort to breath deeply to prove his point as he did so.

"Right," the girl said disbelievingly, though she decided to continue: "Jack cancelled the Fashion Fest."

"He what?"

The redhead quickly jumped off the stool and grabbed the boy's arms to hold him in place. "Please, Shawn, it's not that big a deal. You said you wouldn't do anything!"

"How do expect me not to do anything?" the boy demanded as his hands clenched by his sides. "I told Montacute not to screw this up! I'm going to go talk to him," he said firmly, trying to turn and march out of the room.

Juliet held fast to the boy's arms. "Shawn. This is gonna make me not want to tell you things in the future! You promised."

"I can't—" he began but was interrupted by Cory's arrival.

"Uh, guys?" the curly-haired boy said, looking slightly confused.

His two best friends turned to him. Shawn still looked angry and Juliet was holding on to the boy's arms to prevent him from storming off. She quickly released him as her face tinted pink. Shawn only needed to take one look at his best friend to know what happened. "You met her parents?"

"How do you do that?" Cory asked, immediately going to the more pressing issue.

"No, bigger question. How do you not kiss her?" Shawn demanded, forcing himself to stop thinking about "making a big deal about it"— for the time being, at least.

"Look, I was going to, Shawn, alright? But every time I tried all I could think about was Topanga. You were right, though. I mean, I'm not over her but she's not over me. I mean, I know it. Topanga knows it, and. . . the guy she's kissing knows it," he finished as he turned to see Topanga on a date. "Why doesn't Topanga just rip my heart out and stomp on it?"

"She can't. She's busy making out." The boy winced as Juliet poked his side.

"Maybe I'm dreaming. Pinch me," Cory told Shawn, and his eyes widened. "Not on the butt!"

"Sorry. It was just right there."

"Alright, I'm going in."

Shawn and Juliet pushed the curly-haired boy back. "No! Cory, Cory. I'm not gonna let you make a fool of yourself."

"But that guy's helping himself to my woman. You'd do the same if you saw Jack and Juliet on a date!"

"He's seen me and Jack on a date, Cor, and he didn't," the redhead said with her hand still firmly on the boy's shoulder.

"And one, she's not your woman. And two," he looked towards the booth. "Wow, he's fast."

"That's it," Cory declared angrily, "I'm putting stop to this."

"No! That's it, you're going home," Shawn said as he lifted the boy off his feet and threw him over his shoulder. "Okay, watch out! Watch your feet. Hot soup coming though!"

🌎🌎🌎

At school the next day, Cory was telling them what happened after he'd left Mr. Turner's apartment. "I mean, as soon as I kissed Melissa, I felt worse," he finished.

"So you're not interested in her like that," Juliet said with a shrug.

"You did a good thing, kissing another girl. This way, when you see Topanga with another guy you won't go bonkers," Shawn agreed. They turned to see Topanga talking with her date from last night.

"Bonkers," Cory breathed before he ran over and jumped on the boy's back. "Chicken fights, me and Nick."

"Now I've lost him again," Shawn sighed, turning to leave. As he did, his eyes caught an annoyingly familiar blond head that was making its way through the crowd. "Bonkers," he echoed before he quickly pushed after it.

"Montacute! Hey, Montacute!"

The boy turned, and his eyes widened at the sight of Shawn following him. A part of him wanted to disappear into the throng of students but he knew Juliet's best friend would catch him eventually so he stayed put.

"What's your deal?" Shawn demanded as soon as he was within earshot. "I warned you not to mess this up and you've gone and done just that!"

"Look, Hunter," Jack said as he pushed his hand through his blond hair. "You wouldn't understand, okay?"

"Oh, I don't, alright," he said rather nastily, "you've got an amazing girlfriend, one of the best people I know, someone who'd most guys would be over the moon to have as a girlfriend, and yet you have disappointed her over and over. Are you trying to make yourself look bad?"

"I— no," the blonde sighed. "I love Juliet— really, I do—" The other boy's eyes widened at his confession. "It's just that my father doesn't understand that I want to have a relationship with her. He— doesn't approve of her, really, so he schedules things so I don't have any spare time. Like I said, you wouldn't understand."

I love Juliet. Shawn shook his head to clear it. "Look, that doesn't matter. What does matter is that you're screwing your second chance and now she has to go to the Fashion thingy by herself. What do you have to say to that?"

"There's not much I can say." Jack sounded apologetic. "I can't move my father on things like this."

"So that's it, then?" Shawn retorted, "you're going to make her suffer because you can't do your role properly?"

"Well, if it means so much to you why don't you go with her?" the blonde snapped, finally losing his patience. He didn't have time for Juliet's idiot friends.

🌎🌎🌎

The Prom Fashion Fest had given her a solid black dress to wear which Juliet was grateful for. Sometimes events like these had terrible coordination and could leave her wearing something pink, which would go terribly with her red hair. She now stood with Topanga at the accessories table; all of the other girls were paired up with their dates but the two whose dates had ditched them— or had other conflicts.

"I can't believe Cory's not here," the redhead said, "of all the people, I would've thought that he, at least—" she shook her head. "Are you okay?"

"He said he didn't even want to be friends," Topanga said sadly, "do you think he meant it?"

"Cory? Of course not. You know how much of a drama king he is," the girl told her, "are you okay?" she repeated.

"I'll be alright. What about you?"

"I had a feeling Jack's father would schedule something so I suppose I'm fine." At her friend's disbelieving look, she added, "really."

Mr. Turner entered the room. "Okay, guys. We got a roomful of parents out there, alright? I'm gonna need you lined up as couples."

"We could always walk out together," Juliet suggested with a grin.

"Yeah, but you're not wearing a tux," Topanga pointed out, giving her a faint smile. "We'd be an outfit short."

Sure enough, Cory appeared at the entrance of the room shortly after the last couple walked out. Juliet decided to wait outside to let her friends have a private moment. As she fidgeted with her corsage, footsteps from down the hall made her turn her attention towards them. Her eyes widened. "Shawn?"

The boy (who was wearing the tux Jack was supposed to wear) approached her looking unusually sheepish. "Hey, Julie."

"Um, what are you doing here?"

"Well, since Montacute bailed I thought I might be a decent substitute." He paused to take in the black dress she wore, with its heart-shaped neckline and wide spaghetti straps. "You look beautiful."

Juliet turned pink. "Um, you look very nice too. You didn't have to come, you know." (He did look very nice, truthfully. She'd never seen him so dressed up and it was definitely something she could get used to.)

"Of course I did. You didn't think I was going to let me best friend walk down the aisle by herself, did you?" A part of him (the part from sixth grade that hadn't given up hope of his feelings being returned) wanted to add it'll give you great practice for the future, but he didn't. He quickly swallowed the words down before they had a chance to escape.

"Well, I—" she faltered, unable to tear her gaze away from how undeniably attractive he looked.

Instead of waiting for her to answer, the dark-haired boy offered his arm to her. "Shall we?" 

(Despite trying to bury the thought, Juliet knew she was happier walking down the faux-aisle with Shawn than she would ever be with Jack.) 

[written jan. 2021]
[edited may 2022]