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❛ ᴏᴄᴇᴀɴ ᴇʏᴇꜱ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ ᴛᴇʀᴍs ᴏғ ᴇɴᴅᴇᴀʀᴍᴇɴᴛ ꒱




꒷꒦꒷꒦꒷ ╴𝐌𝐈𝐘𝐀 𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐄𝐋𝐖𝐎𝐎𝐃!
〆₊ ✦ 𓄳 她 𓈒 𒀭࣪⋆ ֗ ִ ᨒ .ﾟ𓄳✦ ₊ 〆
﹙𝙽𝙰𝙽𝙰 𝙺𝙾𝙼𝙰𝚃𝚂𝚄﹚▬▬ 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙
( pronounced MEE-ya )

❝You look like you're about
to kill someone, mom.❞




꒷꒦꒷꒦꒷ ╴𝐀𝐃𝐔𝐋𝐓!𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐓 𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐄𝐋𝐖𝐎𝐎𝐃!
〆₊ ✦ 𓄳 她 𓈒 𒀭࣪⋆ ֗ ִ ᨒ .ﾟ𓄳✦ ₊ 〆
﹙𝙺𝙰𝚁𝙴𝙽 𝙶𝙸𝙻𝙻𝙰𝙽﹚▬▬ 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙣

❝No one plans murder out
loud, Miya.❞
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[First Grade]

Elementary school lunchtime was more equivalent to a zoo during feeding hour. Loud, childish voices called over each other as the young students searched for or talked to their friends. Hands grabbed at food and shoving was not uncommon. Teachers did their best to keep order but had pretty much given up by the third week; they mainly made sure that everyone got fed and no one got hurt.

Juliet hated lunch.

It had been alright when she'd been sitting at Sarah's table; all the girls did their best to act like princesses, had their meals packed by their parents and there was absolutely no horsing around. However, the redhead always had to buy her lunch since her mom was too busy working to make her one. This meant that she was subjected to being jostled around by the students who were waiting ahead and behind her in line. What was worse was that she almost always missed dessert.

Lunch was still terrible but at least it was much improved now that she sat with Shawn. At the first mention of her hatred of waiting in line, the boy offered to get her lunch every day "until the end of time" as he put it. She'd taken the offer immediately and her job now was to make sure to save his seat next to her while he got their food. 

Shawn didn't mind standing in line as the only good thing about not being very well-liked was that most people steered clear from him. He always made sure to get the best options for Juliet and knew her favorite lunch by heart: two pieces of pizza, a fruit cup and Oreos if the school was offering them.

Today, he'd gotten there a bit late but had made a reasonable selection from what was remaining. It was only when he got to the dessert that things went wrong: there was a single package of Oreos left and two hands landed on it at the same time. The dark-haired boy glared at the offender, a boy with ash blond hair and hazel eyes, probably from second grade. "Let go!"

"No way! I saw it first!"

"I grabbed it first," he argued as his grip on the package tightened.

"It's mine!" the other boy insisted.

"Julie needs it more than you do!"

"That's a girl's name! You're friends with a girl?"

"Yeah, she's my wife!" Shawn boasted. "I gotta get these Oreos so let go!"

"You let go."

Clearly, the boy wasn't going to give it up without a fight. It was time for plan B. The trays— which could be slid along the metal shelf as food was served— were sitting to Shawn's right. The boy had a carton of milk open, so he leaned forward and knocked it over. Immediately, the blond's hand slipped from the cookies as his eyes widened at the mess. "Hey!"

Ignoring him, the dark-haired boy placed the package in his pocket for safekeeping. Then, he picked up the two trays before he made his way back to the table without another thought. Plopping down next to the redhead, he placed her tray in front of her and was rewarded with a beaming smile. "Thanks, Shawnie!"

He grinned, pleased with her response. "'Course, Julie. Guess what I got?" he added, watching as her eyes widened.

"Oreos?" she guessed hopefully.

Shawn dug into his pocket and pulled out the blue package. "Yep!"

She took them from him eagerly. "You're the best!"

He made an effort to appear modest, though he straightened proudly at her praise. "Well, I gotta take care of my girl, y'know?"

Juliet rolled her eyes. "Cookie partners, Shawnie!"

"Same thing!"

Unfortunately, though, when she opened the package, most of the cookies were in pieces from the rough handling the two boys had given the dessert. His face fell. "Oh."

The redhead, however, was unaffected and she shrugged. "Oreos are Oreos." Still, the crumbled bits would be hard to share. She thought for a moment before her expression brightened. "Hang on."

He watched her curiously as she proceeded to smash up the cookies more until they were black flecks held together by bits of icing. He gave her a confused look. "What're you doing?"

"Can I see your milk?" she asked, nodding to his carton. He handed it to her without a second thought. Juliet then dumped the cookie bits into the milk and used her juice straw to stir them around before she pronounced proudly: "milk 'n' cookies milkshake!"

"But what about the cookie bits?" Shawn asked. "You don't like those."

"They're too tiny to get stuck in my teeth now and the milk makes the icing less sweet," she explained. "It's the best of both worlds. You can drink out of the carton and I can use my straw."

The dark-haired boy gave her an admiring look. "You're so smart, Julie."

🌎🌎🌎
[Third Grade]

One of the drawbacks of having two boys as best friends were the constant trips to the comic book store. Juliet wasn't a fan of the place as she thought that they had too many male superheroes and the women were put in just because. The only good superhero in her opinion was Wonder Woman, though Cory and Shawn both thought she was wrong.

She often spent her time looking at new issues of the Amazon warrior while the boys searched for the next part of the stories they followed in another area of the store. The redhead was currently standing next to one of the many bins reading The Princess and the Power. She was so absorbed in it that she didn't notice the arrival of an unfamiliar boy with curly, oddly grayish hair. "Hello."

The redhead jumped. "Uh— hi." He stared at her with unabashed curiosity and she shifted uncomfortably. "Can I help you?"

"Girls don't usually come into the comic book store," he remarked bluntly. "I'm in here all the time so I should know."

Juliet immediately disliked him. "Yes, well, clearly you're wrong."

"Obviously," he (to her surprise) agreed. He lowered his voice. "Were you forced?"

"What?"

"Well, since girls don't usually come in here, I thought maybe someone forced you in here."

"No one can force me anywhere," the girl told him irritably. "I'm with my friends."

Before the boy could answer, a comfortable arm wrapped around her shoulders. "What's goin' on, Julie?"

"Nothing. He was just leaving." She sent the boy an unfriendly look.

At the sight of Shawn— who was taller than either of them— the boy's eyes widened. "Um— yep, bye!" He quickly made his departure.

The redhead cast her best friend a grateful look. "Thanks, Shawnie. He was annoying me."

The dark-haired boy gave an amused chuckle. "Yeah, I could see that. I gotta take care of my girl, y'know?"

"Cookie partners, Shawnie," she reminded him dutifully.

"Same thing!"

🌎🌎🌎
[Fifth Grade]

Juliet's second favorite season was summer. The days were long and warm and she got to spend nearly every waking moment with her best friends. While she never went on trips or did anything that cost a lot of money, the trio always found ways to make mischief and get into trouble. The only damper was when it rained for hours on end and they couldn't spend time outside, though Juliet was always creative in finding ways that they could pass the time.

On this particular rainy day, Cory had a dentist appointment so it was just her and Shawn hanging out in her room. The dark-haired boy was sitting on her bed, propped up against her pillows with a comic book in hand. Juliet was next to him and her fingers moved deftly as she made complicated braids for her friendship bracelet. It was not a usual activity for her, but when she spent time alone she liked to mix it in between the books she was reading. Music was playing from the old radio Shawn had found in the downtown pawn shop when her favorite song came on.

The girl's head— which had been bent in focus over the lengths of thread— jerked up as the first few chords of My Girl came on. A smile curved on her lips as David Ruffin began to sing the lyrics. Before long, she'd stood and had begun to dance around her room as she sang along: "'my girl, my girl, my girl, talkin' 'bout my girl, my girl!'"

At the sound of her voice (which wasn't terrible, all things considered) her best friend put down his comic to watch her with fascination. It wasn't that he hadn't heard her sing before, or seen her dance, but she did it now with so much obvious joy that it made his heart beat faster and captured his attention.

During the second part of the chorus, the redhead made her way over to him and held her hands out, asking him to dance with her. Shawn, for his part, had never really been a dancer. He didn't see the point in it, truthfully, and didn't like looking stupid (not that Julie did, of course.) He hesitated, wanting to reach out and grasp her hands but also unwilling to make a fool of himself in front of her. She stopped singing for a moment. "C'mon, Shawnie. It'll be fun, I promise. You don't even have to do much."

The girl's eyes widened and she stuck out her bottom lip to pout at him. Shawn sighed, knowing he would never say no now. Slowly, he climbed off the bed and took her hands, causing her expression to brighten instantly. Juliet resumed singing as she held onto him and danced around his still frame. Despite feeling incredibly awkward, he couldn't help but willingly lift an arm to allow her to spin underneath it.

He was rewarded with a bright giggle that almost completely made up for the discomfort he was currently feeling and— whenever he sensed she wanted to spin again— lifted his arm obligingly each time. My Girl ended and gave way to Don't Push it, Don't Force it. The redhead didn't know the words to that song as well as she had the previous one and stilled. Instead, she chose to throw her arms around the dark-haired boy who startled but quickly returned the gesture.

"You're the best," the girl murmured as she hugged him tightly.

Warmth bloomed in his chest as he hugged her back. "I gotta make my girl happy, y'know?"

She smiled slightly against the fabric of his green shirt. "Cookie partners, Shawnie."

"Same thing," he countered, feeling happy with their usual give-and-take.

🌎🌎🌎
[36 Years Old]

The Matthews' Christmas party was always rather enjoyable especially now that the awkwardness from Juliet's abrupt departure had mostly vanished. It was nice to be able to talk to her best friends again without the heavy cloud weighing over their heads and she enjoyed watching the younger generation spend time together; it reminded her of the good times she'd spent with her friends.

However, the one drawback was the lingering uneasiness between her and Shawn. They were still doing the "will-they-won't-they" dance they'd done the summer before their Senior year of high school and it made things rather uncomfortable if anyone went anywhere near the subject. It seemed as if history were destined to repeat itself until they chose a different path.

The redhead was currently sitting on the Matthews' bay window slightly separated from the partygoers with a mug of not kid-friendly hot cocoa clutched between her hands. She was staring fixedly at the blonde woman who was talking to her best friend. Her relationship with Katy Hart was contentious at best, with jealous feelings sparking inside of her whenever the waitress stood too close to Shawn or talked to him for too long. As much as she liked the woman's daughter, Katy was an entirely different story.

She supposed the reason she felt so resentful of their relationship was that it was nearly a perfect mirror of her and Shawn's friendship. Katy, too, came from a less wealthy background and had had Maya's dad leave her, just like Shawn's parents had left him and Juliet's dad had left her. It didn't help that Katy's husband leaving was also a reflection of Juliet leaving and the two had become close because of their similar experiences. (She constantly reminded herself that it wasn't her fault she'd left; she'd had no choice, not after his decision.) Unlike Katy's husband, though, Juliet had come back to stay.

"You look like you're about to kill someone, mom," a young Asian girl observed as she sat next to the older woman.

Juliet tore her gaze away from her best friend to look at her (adopted) daughter. "No one plans murder out loud, Miya," she replied dismissively, though there was a light, joking note to her tone.

"Who's gonna get offed, then?" The brunette followed her mother's gaze to where it had landed back on the blonde woman. "Y'know, if you kill Mrs. Hart it's gonna make my friendship with Maya really awkward."

The redhead sighed. "It's a good thing I'm not really going to kill her, then."

"You could just go up to and talk to them," Miya suggested. "It's not like they're gonna shut you out."

"I know," the older woman agreed. "But I just don't want to have to deal with-with her."

"Mrs. Hart isn't so bad. She is really nice."

"You traitor," Juliet teased her.

Before the brunette could respond, a third member joined them on the window bench. "So, who's body are we going to bury?"

"Mrs. Hart's," the teen replied.

Cory gave his best friend an exasperated look. "Jules, I've told you before that you can't kill people we know."

"I'm not gonna kill her," she repeated. "Maybe just humiliate her a little."

The curly-haired man glanced at Miya. "Why don't you go find Riley and Farkle? I'll take care of your mom."

The brunette gave her mom a brief hug before she stood. "Let me know if you need me, Mr. Matthews."

"Of course," Cory said, and the girl gave the older woman a reassuring smile before she disappeared into the crowd of their family and friends. It was a moment before he continued: "what're you thinking about?" Juliet didn't answer right away. Instead, she chose to lean against the man and rest her head on his shoulder. He looked down at her. "It's bad, huh?"

"I don't want to be seen as a jealous ex," she explained softly. "I know I'm better than that and I care more about Shawn's happiness than trying to insert myself into his life again. It's just. . ." she trailed off, trying to find the right words.

"You still care about him a lot," Cory remarked.

"Yeah. He's, like, my guy, y'know? I just want to make sure that whoever he finds a romantic interest in is the best fit for him, even if it isn't me. I don't want him to get hurt."

When her best friend didn't say anything, she shifted her head to look up at him and started at the surprised look on his face. "What?"

"Out of all the times Shawn's called you his girl, I don't think I've ever heard you call him your guy."

"Oh," the redhead said. "I never thought about that." Her gaze returned to where the dark-haired man stood with Katy.

"I know you and Shawn still have a chance, Jules. You guys love each other even if you're both too blind to admit it," Cory told her. "You shouldn't give him up so easily."

The redhead knew that she'd fight for Shawn tooth and nail if given the chance, but it seemed as if their ship had sailed despite their tentative renewal of their friendship and traditional patterns. She knew that all she could really do was be there for him when he needed her and hope for the best while giving their relationship time to recover after years of hurt and separation.

[written apr. 2021]
[edited may 2022]