Archive of Our Own

The bell had barely finished ringing when the classroom seemed to empty all at once. Chairs scraped against the white linoleum, half-finished conversations about after-school activities disappeared into the hallway, and within seconds, the room that had been full was nearly empty.

Agott, who had been taking her time putting her notebooks and materials back into her backpack, looked up just in time to see the last few students rushing through the door. 

She paused, one hand still inside her bag, and looked at her arts teacher, who was sitting at her desk.

“What’s the rush with everyone, Ms. Alaira?”

Ms. Alaira glanced up from her desk, where she was gathering together a stack of papers. “Apparently, Qifrey just put out the casting of the roles for his next play in the drama club.” She stopped, looking over to Agott. “Wait, Agott, aren’t you in it?”

“Yes.”

“Did you not audition for it?” She tilted her head.

“I did, but I told Mr. Qifrey I didn’t really care about it.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Shakespeare is not really my favorite, you know. So, I’m not that excited about it.”

It wasn’t entirely untrue. Agott had never been particularly keen in Shakepearian tragedies. Everyone else had been going on about it for weeks ever since their teacher had proposed the idea, their dramatic sighing over Shakespeare, the arguments over who would get which role… It had all become quite impossible to escape. She had only auditioned because everyone in the club had to.

Yet, Ms. Alaira gave her an amused look.

“Still, you should go with your friends. I’m sure they’re really excited to talk about it.”

Agott sighed and slung her backpack over one shoulder, nodding at her teacher’s direction. “Yes, maybe you’re right. Have a nice afternoon, Miss!”

“You too, Agott.”

She stepped out into the hallway, immediately greeted by the distant sound of excited voices and hurried footsteps.

She followed the noise.

By the time she had reached the hallway outside the theater room, she spotted a crowd of her friends and classmates gathered around a large sheet posted on the drama club’s notice board, students craning their necks and talking over one another as they tried to find their names.

Agott slowed near the edge of the crowd, trying unsuccessfully to see past several taller students.

“Agott!”

She turned towards the familiar voice.

Tetia was waving enthusiastically from where she stood with Richeh and Jujy a bit distant from the crowd, all three of them looking pleased with themselves. 

“Hey, did Mr. Qifrey announce the roles?”

“Yep! I’m playing Juliet’s nurse!” Tetia says with a big grin.

“Richeh is playing the Prince of Verona.” Richeh continues with a small, pleased expression.

“And I’m playing Mrs. Capulet.” Jujy finishes with a proud smirk.

Agott’s expression brightened just slightly. “That’s great, guys.” Her eyes immediately drifted back towards the crowd and back to the girls. “Who’s playing Juliet?”

“Who do you think?” Jujy answered with a smile, and Agott barely had to think about it.

“Ah. Coco.” 

Tetia’s grin somehow got bigger. “Yep! She deserves it; she absolutely killed it at the audition!” 

Of course she had. Agott remembered Coco’s audition; everyone did, probably. She had walked onto the stage a bit nervous, apologizing to Mr. Qifrey for being a bit late and then somehow proceeded to deliver the lines with enough feeling to leave the entire room silent afterward.

Agott had started clapping before she had even properly processed that the audition was over.

“And… Who’s Romeo?”

The reaction from her friends was immediate; all three of them stopped smiling and stayed quiet for a few moments before Tetia broke it with a nervous expression.

“...Why don’t you go take a look for yourself?”

Agott frowned at that. 

“C’mon, just tell me.” She rolled her eyes, not wanting to cut through the crowd just for one name. “Is it Custas? Tartah? Euini?”

The three girls exchanged looks while Agott stared at them. Richeh suddenly found something very interesting in the opposite direction of Agott’s face; Tetia was trying and failing not to smile from behind her hand, and Jujy looked like she had just been handed the world's most entertaining secret, with the way her eyes were sparkling.

Weird. Very weird.

“Fine, I’ll look if you three want to be sooo cryptic about it.” She rolled her eyes and turned away from them, walking towards the crowd and shoving her way between the students standing in front of the announcement.

At first the list was just a blur of names. Euini as Friar Lawrence, Tartah as Tybalt, Custas as Mercutio… Her eyes travelled all the way to the top and, sure enough, there it was, at the top.

Coco C. as Juliet Capulet

And right beneath it–

Agott stopped. Then blinked about four times in one second. Then got closer. Because there’s no way–

Agott A. as Romeo Montague

For a whole moment she just stared at that single line in the list, her brain refusing to process it. But then, it did.

“WHAT?!”

Several people nearby turned to look at her, but she didn’t care about that, because this couldn’t be happening–

“Agott!” 

A hand on her shoulder and a familiar sweet voice made her jump so violently that her backpack nearly slipped off her shoulder onto the floor.

She turned, and sure enough, Coco was right behind her, beaming with her smile that made Agott’s breakfast want to make its way upwards.

“Looks like we're the protagonists together! It’s going to be so much fun!”

Agott’s eyes widened, and several cogs in her brain started working.

Coco was Juliet. She was Romeo. Three months of rehearsals–

Her entire body went rigid, her heart took a marathon run, and she took a step back away from Coco. 

“Uh– I– One second! I-I’ll be right back!”

And before Coco or anyone else could say another word, Agott turned on her heel and exited the crowd, in the direction of the theater room doors, pulling open the heavy wooden doors like it was nothing. From behind her, she could vaguely hear someone calling her name.

She pushed the heavy doors closed and scanned inside. The theater was seemingly empty. The stage lights were off, leaving the room lit only by the fluorescent lights above the aisles and near the chairs of the audience. No sight of him.

“Mr. Qifrey! Are you in here?!”

Something metallic clattered backstage, and before Agott could follow it, her teacher emerged from behind the curtains, a clipboard tucked beneath one arm and his phone in hand. He looked entirely too relaxed for a man who had just seemingly ruined her life.

“Hello, Agott! The results for the auditions are outside, if that’s what you’re looking for–”

“Sir, why am I playing Romeo?” She cut the pleasantries.

Qifrey blinked, tilting his head to the side, ever so confused and maybe a bit nervous.

“Because… I put you in the role?”

Agott stared at him. “No– I mean, why am I in it?”

“I… don’t understand the question.” His expression shifted, a bit thoughtful now. “Are you uncomfortable playing a male role? Is that the issue? Because you’ve always said you didn’t mind–”

“No, I mean–” Agott pressed her lips together, trying to think of a way to verbalize the issue. “I kinda didn’t… Expect to get the main role.”

That apparently was a question her teacher could understand.

“Oh, well, as your teacher, Agott, I just notice that you tend to gravitate to roles that aren’t too important in our productions. I’m not sure if that’s just a personal preference of yours or that you don’t think you can handle a protagonist, but I know you can, and I want to encourage you to put yourself in the spotlight more than usual.”

Agott looked away from him. 

That was sweet. But that was also very much not the problem.

“But– Aren’t there any better people for the role?”

“All of my students are incredibly talented, which means they could take on any role in this. This includes you, of course.”

He said with such genuine certainty that Agott almost felt bad that she was having such an issue with it. Almost.

“Trust me, Agott, if you’re scared that you're going to fail, we’ll be here with you throughout the whole process. And, of course, Coco is playing the protagonist along with you. You two are best friends; I’m sure you can rely on her to help you deal with it; she’s been in your place before.”

Agott’s head snapped back towards him, lip trembling along with her hands as she struggled to find a way to, again, express herself.

“That’s– That’s not–” Her teacher unfortunately did not seem to notice her rapidly deteriorating ability to form complete sentences, because he continued.

“But if you do truly want to trade roles with anyone, Tartah did communicate with me that he wanted to play Romeo. I’m sure if you speak with him, you can play Tybalt in his place, and he gets to co-star with Coco–”

Agott closed her mouth so hard her teeth clacked loudly, her panic disappearing so abruptly that even her teacher paused to look at her.

Tartah.

Tartah, who had spent a frankly unbearable portion of middle school Coco around with the subtlety of a lost puppy.

Tartah, who had once brought her a flower from the courtyard because he’d overheard her saying they looked beautiful.

Tartah, who had gotten over his crush eventually, supposedly.

…No. Absolutely not.

 She had spent years carefully pretending she did not notice when other people liked Coco. She had endured Tartah’s middle school infatuation, Custas constantly asking Coco to partner with him for group projects, all the other boys and girls who had noticed the beauty and brightness of Coco as well as Agott.

She was not about to voluntarily hand over Romeo. Not to Tartah.

“I’ll do it.”

Qifrey’s confusion was replaced with brightness.

“Oh, really?!”

“Yes.” Agott straightened her back, suddenly the perfect picture of determination. “I wasn’t confident in my skills before, but since you believe in me, mister, I will do my best to make your vision come true.”

Qifrey’s entire face lit up at her words. “That’s wonderful to hear, Agott! Oh, I’m so happy.”

Agott nodded once, a smile on her face as if she had not just made a decision fueled almost entirely by jealousy.

“I– I have to go to get lunch.” She adjusted her backpack, looking at the door. “I– I will see you later this afternoon, sir.”

Qifrey nodded with a polite smile, waving a hand at her. “Thank you again, Agott!”

She turned and exited before he could say anything else. 

The hallway outside was almost empty now, the crowd around the casting sheet had disappeared to what she presumed was to have lunch or to go home. The quiet made everything so different from the noisy hallway from earlier; even the paper with her name at the near top looked innocent now, hanging on the board as though it hadn’t just decided Agott’s life for the next months.

She walked past it. 

Then she stopped– She wasn’t entirely sure why she had stopped. Her legs had simply decided to stop working.

The reality of what she had just agreed to began arriving all at once.

Three months. Three months of rehearsals. Three months of standing across from Coco and looking directly at her while saying the most famous romantic lines in all of theater. 

Agott felt a bit lightheaded. Romantic scenes, she would have to kiss–

Her vision of the hallway tilted slightly.

“Hey, Agott!” Agott looked in the direction of the voice. 

Coco was standing at the other end of the hallway, apparently waiting for her. 

Before Agott could try to pretend things were normal, Coco noticed her state and immediately started walking towards her. “You alright? You look really pale.”

“I’m fine.” She said, voice a bit shaky, “Just– Need to sit down.” She made approximately two more steps before giving up and dropping down against the wall.

Coco gasped and rushed over. “Oh gosh! Are you okay? Do you need to go to the infirmary?”

“No, no.” She raised her palm in Coco’s direction. “Just– Give me two minutes.” She didn’t care that she had apparently shown her best friend four fingers instead of two.

Coco crouched down beside her, concern all over her face.

“Were you talking to Mr. Qifrey? Did he give you bad news?”

Agott let out a weak laugh. If only.

“No, I only wanted to confirm that he didn’t make a mistake when putting me as Romeo.”

The other girl frowned. “Mistake? Why would it be a mistake?”

“Just–” She stares at the opposite wall. Think, there has to be an answer. A normal answer.

Something that didn’t involve rolling her eyes affectionately at the girl beside her and saying, ‘Oh, you know, because I’ve secretly had a crush on you since we were thirteen and I’m not emotionally prepared to act the most famous romance story with you as my pair in front of the entire school and our mothers! Just that, don’t worry about it!’

…Nothing came to mind, so she decided to lie.

“Forget it, I was insecure I wouldn’t be able to handle it.” 

Her best friend’s expression immediately softened. “Oh, Agott… That’s silly! You’re going to be the best Romeo ever! I’m super honored to be your Juliet. I love when we co-star together.”

Agott stared at her, and for what felt like the 6th time in the last half hour, her brain stopped working. Because Ccoo was smiling and she was so happy about this.

I love when we co-star together.

Your Juliet.

She swallowed, feeling the rapid rush of blood to her face.

“Right. Uh– Can you help me up? I think I need food in my system.”

“Oh, yeah, that might explain why you’re so pale.” Coco stood and offered her a hand. “Come on, let’s go hang with the girls and talk about our plans for the presentation!”

She stared at the outstretched hand she had asked for before taking it in hers, Coco pulling her up with far more enthusiasm than necessary. She nearly stumbled into her.

And just like that, her heart began beating too fast again. 

Three months, she reminded herself as she and Coco walked to the cafeteria. She was going to have to survive three months of this.

She is likely screwed.

· · ─ ·৻ꪆ· ─ · ·

“Hey, Agott, can we talk?” 

The black-haired girl snaps her gaze toward the voice, forgetting the script in front of her as she meets Coco's golden gaze.

“Of course, what is it?”

They're both outside the theater; Agott sits on a chair in the hallway while Coco stays up, staring at Agott with her big, golden gaze.

“So… Mr. Qifrey came to talk to me after what happened…”

“What ‘what’ happened?” Agott asked, genuinely confused, an eyebrow raised.

“Oh, y’know… How you kinda freaked out when trying to get your lines out earlier today.” Coco shrugged her shoulders.

“Oh. That.” Agott broke their shared gaze and stared at her feet, not daring to even think to look at her friend. 

She wants to deny it, say that she didn't ‘freak out’, but she would be lying. Because it did happen that way, and it was in front of everyone else.

Agott and Coco were rehearsing their lines for the masquerade ball scene where Juliet and Romeo first meet. Agott had been having a good run all day; she barely forgot any lines from the scenes from earlier, and so she hardly needed someone in the audience to remind her of them, which she had always felt incredibly embarrassed to do. 

But everything changed when she stood in front of Coco and had to recite the lines to her. Her voice was trembling; she got them confused more than three times, and when Mr. Qifrey read the direction in the script that Agott was supposed to kiss Coco at that moment, she froze completely for what her castmates said was ten whole seconds, her face completely red. She couldn't do it. 

They tried again and again and again, but every time, no matter how much Agott thought she was ready that time, she froze. On the last attempt, she just admitted defeat and left the stage completely, face flushed, sweating, and feeling like she was going to throw up her lunch. 

“Yeah…” Coco continued, leaning her shoulder against the wall next to her, “Mr. Qifrey said he is probably going to scrap the kissing in that scene and rewrite it so it's better for you and wanted me to tell you. He said the last thing he wants is for you to force yourself to do it.”

Agott, still looking at her feet with shame, lets out a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank goodness.” She said under her breath. 

Coco lets out a tiny giggle at that before clearing her throat. “But that's not all that I've come here to talk to you about.”

Agott turns to look at her and tilts her head, but nevertheless nods her head for Coco to continue. The green-haired girl, in turn, backs away from the wall and walks until she's in front of Agott.

“This is the first time you're playing a romance protagonist, right?” Agott nods. “Okay, so I was thinking that since you're struggling to get your lines out in front of everyone, we could rehearse together. Just the two of us at my house!” 

Agott blinks up at her. “W-What?”

“Yeah!” Coco smiles at her. “I proposed this idea to Mr. Qifrey, and he says it could work. This way, there's no pressure of everyone watching you; it's just going to be me, your best friend. And once you feel confident enough about them, we try rehearsing in front of everyone!” Coco must’ve noticed Agott’s confused expression because her smile falls and is replaced by an apprehensive look. “Unless… You think it wouldn’t work?”

Agott continues staring at her because, yes, this could work if the problem was that Agott was embarrassed to do the lines in front of everyone else. But it wasn’t. 

The problem was the fact that she had to say possibly the most romantic lines in all of theater to her best friend, who she has had a crush on for years now. 

But she can’t just say that, not to Coco and not to her teacher. So… 

“No! No, I mean– I do think it would work!” 

She lies, and Coco’s smile is back on her face, making the butterfly in her stomach dance around uncomfortably. 

“Oh, Agott! That’s great to hear!” She envelops Agott in a hug. “You’ll see! In no time, you’re going to be the perfect Romeo.”

Agott lets out a nervous laugh, the sense of dread passing through her body. “Y-Yeah, I’m sure too.”

She is, indeed, very screwed.

· · ─ ·৻ꪆ· ─ · ·

“Romeo!” Coco says, running back, leaning forward in the imaginary railing.

“My dear?”

“At what time tomorrow should I send the messenger to you?”

“Nine o’clock.”

“I won’t fail. It will feel like twenty years until then.” Coco stares at her with a smile, letting silence sit between them before a nervous laugh escapes her. “I’ve… forgotten why I called you back.” Coco smiles down at her, offering her hands, which Agott takes in hers.

“I’ll stand here until you remember.” She kisses the back of her hands, not breaking their shared gaze.

“I’ll forget it, so you’ll have to stand there forever, because of how much I love your company.”

“And I’ll remain here, even if you keep forgetting. I’ll forget that I have any other home but here.” 

Coco squeezes Agott's hands one last time before they let go, taking a few steps back.

“Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow that I will say good night until it becomes tomorrow.” 

“May sleep shut your eyes, and may you feel peace in your heart.”

At the music ending and the imaginary spotlight on both of them disappearing, Coco and Agott look at each other, a bit breathless from all the monologues and sonnets, before a smile breaks on Coco's face as she runs over to Agott and hugs her tight, Agott letting out an ‘oof’ sound.

“We did it!” She says, amidst happy giggles, “No checking scripts, no breaking character!” 

Agott laughs with her, returning the hug. “I wouldn't celebrate it yet. That's one scene we've managed to do without errors. We've got many others that still need to achieve that.”

Coco pulls away, looking at her best friend with a pout. “Let me celebrate, dummy. Especially for you!”

“Me?” Agott raised an eyebrow at her.

“Yes! Just a few weeks ago, you couldn't get your lines from this scene out; now look at you! You did wonderfully!”

Agott blushes, feeling embarrassed by Coco's praise. “I– You also did great! Don't try to escape it!” She lets out a heavy sigh. “I wouldn't have done it as well if not for you. Your idea of us rehearsing the lines alone really helped me.”

Coco makes an amused sound. “Okay, I'll take the credit for that.” She gives Agott a smirk before hugging her again, the embrace warming up Agott's body more than she thought it was possible. She should learn by now not to question what Coco is able to make her feel.

She unfurls herself from Agott's embrace and gives her a cheeky look, which Agott raises an eyebrow at.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I don't know, just about what scene we should go for next.” She walks towards the script that's on Coco's bed, turning the pages.

“Do you have any suggestions?” Agott grabs her own script she had thrown on the floor a few minutes earlier, thumbing through the pages, her lines highlighted in purple, scene directions Mr. Qifrey had given written on the sides.

“Uhm… Act 2, Scene 7.”

“And… Which one is that?” She doesn’t remember that by the numbers.

“The marriage ceremony scene, of course!”

Agott grips her script tight enough that she fears her nails must’ve ripped it, head snapping to look at Coco. “W-What marriage scene?!” She doesn’t remember that. She would remember a marriage scene that she would have to act out with Coco, she is sure of it. “I don’t remember that! Did Mr. Qifrey add a scene and I didn’t–”

Coco is laughing.

“I’m kidding, Agott!” She crosses the path to meet her friend. “Breath, sorry, I just wanted to see your reaction.”

Agott feels her face heat up, snapping her gaze away from Coco's and pouting, “That was not funny, Coco.” 

“Come on, it was a tiny bit.” Coco pinches her fingers and hugs her friend sideways, shaking her shoulder in an attempt to make her smile. “Agott…”

“...What?”

“I’m sorry, but come on, can you really be mad at me?” Coco lays her chin on her shoulder, blinking her golden eyes up at her.

Agott crosses her arms, huffing before sighing in defeat, unable to resist Coco's puppy eyes. “Fine, it was a bit funny now that I think back.”

Coco’s lips morphed into a bright smile, hugging Agott tighter, whose pout was undone and replaced with a tiny smile. 

Coco pulled back, hands sneaking down to hold Agott's. “Come on, I’ll let you choose which scene we rehearse next as an apology.”

Agott could agree to that.

· · ─ ·৻ꪆ· ─ · ·

It was a late Friday afternoon, and after several hours of running scenes, fixing marks, adjusting props, and going over transitions and the music, the cast of teens had scattered with the speed of a promised weekend to rest before the final week of all of this. 

Only a couple of voices lingered backstage as people gathered their things: Agott and Coco, both girls, were gathering their things and slinging their backpacks over their shoulders. They were almost outside the door when they heard Qifrey call after them.

“Agott, Coco, can we talk for a moment?”

Both girls stopped in their tracks, turning to face their teacher at almost the same speed.

“Yes, of course.” They said in unison.

Mr. Qifrey smiled, though she could see there was something hesitant about it. He glanced towards the now-empty room and then back at the two of them.

“Listen, I am… concerned.” 

Her stomach dropped. Her mind almost immediately started searching through every possible thing that could’ve gone wrong.

 Coco was far more efficient, voicing her question instead. “About what? Did something happen?”

“No, no!” He lifted his hands quickly. “I mean, I think that's the problem.” 

“What?” They questioned at the same time, and he hesitated. Agott didn’t like that.

“How do I say this– You two have been amazing in your roles since the beginning. I can see the passion and love in each line and each action. I am very proud of both of you, especially you, Agott. You've come so far since the girl who could barely get her lines out in front of everyone else.” 

Agott blinked at him, and for a moment, the knot in her stomach loosened, Coco glancing toward her with a proud smile. Her teacher continued before Agott could do something embarrassing.

“But because I can see how dedicated you two are, that is the reason I also need to tell you two of my concerns.”

Aaand the knot returned.

“That is…?” Coco wasn’t smiling anymore.

Qifrey inhaled, closing his eye before opening it again. “I want to talk to you both about the fact that you two have been avoiding acting out the actual kiss in the final scene.”

Agott went still, and beside her, Coco did the same, both girls letting out a tiny ‘Oh.’ at the words.

There it was, she thought to herself. The one thing that had somehow survived three months of one-on-one rehearsals, hand-holding that accidentally lasted too long, romantic speeches, and every other situation she had gone through with Coco during this journey.

The kiss. They had managed everything else somehow. They had both gotten through scenes that, months ago, made them nervous and malfunction. But whenever they reached that moment, the climax and the most regarded scene in the story… Agott’s hand would appear between them.

Mr. Qifrey continued, unaware of her dilemma, “I know that kissing in theater can feel daunting, and this is why I rewrote the ball scene to remove that action from the script. But you two reassured me months ago that you could do the final kiss scene. And yet, every time we rehearse it, Agott puts her hand in the way to avoid it.”

Agott felt Coco glance at her, but she kept looking straight at her superior.

“Y-Yes, but we will do it! As we've said, it will happen the night of the presentation.”

Qifrey sighed at her words.

“That's the problem. I am concerned that if you two don't rehearse the action before the day in a week, Agott won't be able to do it because there is no practice. You couldn't do the kissing in front of just your castmates and me; I am concerned and severely doubt that you'll be able to do it in front of other students, parents, and other teachers.”

Agott opened her mouth, but closed it almost immediately after. Because the worst part was that her teacher was right.

She had spent months telling herself that the night of the performance would somehow be different, that when the lights were on, she was wearing Romeo’s costume and the audience was watching, she would become someone else. Romeo can kiss Juliet, but Agott–

Her gaze dropped to the floor, shame and embarrassment taking over her mind. 

The entire production was nearly finished; the sets had been built, the costumes were almost ready, every scene had been rehearsed so many times that Agott would find herself mouthing her lines when she was bored.

And yet, here they were, one week away from the actual presentation and with one tiny part of a scene still threatening to derail everything. 

Because of her, because apparently she could face an entire audience, memorize dozens of pages of Shakespeare, learn to act in front of people and confess Romeo’s love to Juliet in front of all of them, but she couldn’t kiss Coco. 

Or rather, she couldn’t kiss Coco without everyone realizing exactly how badly she wanted to do it for real and not for a play.

Agott’s fingers tightened around the strap of her bag, biting her lip hard enough that she felt like it could potentially draw blood.

Her teacher seemed to notice her apprehension.

“I don't want to pressure you two to do it. We're still a week away, and since it's a small change, it could definitely be removed. But I need an actual answer by Monday, so we have time for a possible rewrite and rehearsing new lines, alright?”

A whole weekend to think about it, huh? The pressure was going to kill her.

Agott knew she could tell him no; he had made that clear, gave them an out, rewrite the scene as they had done before. But something in her chest twisted. 

It wasn’t just about the kiss or her fear of kissing Coco, but about everything her teacher had trusted her with when he’d given her the role of protagonist. It was also about the work Coco had put into Juliet, about the cast, the production, the months they had spent building towards that one night next Friday.

She and Coco shared a look, a mix of apprehension, nervousness, and maybe a bit of fear.

“...Alright.”

“Yeah.” They answered at the same time. 

Qifrey smiled and let out a sigh, apparently satisfied that this conversation hadn’t ended with either of the girls walking out.

“Good. Thank you for listening to me. I don't want to hold you two here more than needed. Have a nice weekend and see you two on Monday.”

He gave them one last encouraging nod before turning back towards the stage, and for a few seconds after he left, neither Agott nor Coco moved.

Agott stared at the floor, and Coco stood still beside her, in awkward silence, and somewhere between them stood the moment they had been avoiding for so long, a conversation that they had not longed to have.

· · ─ ·৻ꪆ· ─ · ·

It was less than twenty-four hours later that everything changed.

“Dear Juliet, why are you still so beautiful?” Agott brushed a green strand back into place, hand resting on Coco's cheeks, the lines she had said countless times throughout the last three months coming almost like second nature. “I’ll rest here forever and escape the control of the bad fortune that has plagued my body. Eyes, see for the last time! Arms, make your last embrace! And lips, you doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss the infinite deal I have made with death.”

Agott gulps at the cue she herself gives. Her hand moves from her cheek to cover Coco's lips, as she prepares to fake the kiss like they've done dozens of times. She closes her eyes, face just a few inches from Coco's–

She feels a squeeze to her wrist, a hand moving hers away. She halts at that and opens her eyes, seeing golden eyes that were just closed, staring at her.

“Agott– Stop.” Coco sits up, an apprehensive look on her face. Fuck, did she do something wrong?

“What– What's wrong?” Agott asks, her voice a bit shaky, staring intently at Coco.

Coco looks bashful for a moment, cheeks red, before she shakes her head and looks at her friend with determination in her eyes.

“Kiss me.”

The two words are enough to short-circuit Agott's brain, making her stare at the girl for several moments, blinking in confusion. 

“H-Huh?” Is the best she can come up with.

“S-Sorry! What I mean is–” She takes a deep breath. “I-I think Mr. Qifrey is right. About the kiss, I mean. If we keep the agreement to only kiss the night of the show, what guarantees that we won't screw things up when it's time?”

Agott takes a few seconds to reply, mind still processing what Coco is saying. “S-So– You want me to kiss you because–”

“So we lose this barrier that's stopping us from acting these scenes to their full extent.”

Agott's mind is reeling. Was she awake? Did she even wake up this morning? She sneakily pinches her own arm and feels the pain. This was reality, or as much reality as it was for her crush of four years to ask her to kiss her in her bedroom.

Coco clears her throat and continues, “So I think we should kiss… just to see what it's like and so things aren't awkward anymore when that scene comes up.”

“R-Right– Uh– Damn– I guess? We can do it?”

“You don't sound confident. I don't want to force you to kiss me, Agott.”

I do want to kiss you. So bad. “You're not! Just– Nervous.”

“You sure? I need you to say it; I don't want to violate your boundaries just because we're on a play.”

The dark-haired girl breathes in and out, looking at Coco with what she hopes is confidence. “I accepted this was a possibility when I took the role. I'm sure of it. I do want it. To break that barrier, I mean.”

Coco looks at her for a moment before nodding her head. “Okay.” 

Coco gets up from the floor and makes the short trip to her bed, patting the spot next to her, encouraging Agott to sit next to her. Which she does.

“So, uhm… How are we doing this?” She asks, refusing to look at Coco's face, scared that she will chicken out if she does so. Did she brush her teeth after lunch? She must've had. She hopes for any God out there that she did.

Coco lets out a giddy giggle, unaware of Agott's thoughts. “You could start by coming closer, I think.”

Agott looks between them and realizes they're a few feet more apart than usual when they sit together.

“Ah. Right–” She says embarrassingly before moving closer, their knees bumping into each other.

They stay in silence for a bit after that. Agott feels like her throat wants to close on itself; her mouth feels dry and– shit, this is definitely not the best thing to be going through when she is about to have her first kiss. 

Wait. This is her first kiss. Is it Coco’s as well? 

“Have– Have you been kissed before?” Agott asks, trying to ignore how sweaty her skin feels and how her heartbeat seems determined to send her six feet under.

“No.” She almost dares to call it bullshit, but Coco wouldn’t lie about that. Not now. But still, how? How did no one who has clearly liked Coco over the years not manage to do it? “Have you?”

“No.” 

“Good, no expectations. It's just us.”

“Just us.” She echoes, and Coco nods.

Agott’s hands grip tightly to the duvet under her, hands sweating as neither of them move for a few moments. Then, she feels Coco's hand fall on top of hers, squeezing it, a whisper of ‘it’s okay’ coming from her.

Agott’s other hand is shaking, but she tenderly pushes a strand of Coco's hair off her face, fingers cradling the side of her cheek. She feels Coco's skin heat up under her touch. With one last squeeze to their joined hands, Agott is the one who closes the distance between them, eyes fluttering shut.

For a split second she doesn't feel much, but suddenly reality crashes in, and she feels and realizes a lot of things:

Coco's lips are soft and almost mold perfectly into Agott's. 

Her lips taste like the grape chapstick Coco had been using since 8th grade.

She lets out a tiny noise when Agott moves her mouth slightly, a noise that makes Agott want to explode, not sure if in a good or bad way.

But most importantly, she realizes she shouldn't have agreed to this, because she will possibly never recover from kissing Coco for one week because of this play, and never again.

At that thought, she pulls away, reality hitting that this isn't a true kiss like she had been daydreaming since she was thirteen. This was strictly professional.

Agott's eyes flutter open, feeling her heart speed in her chest hard enough that it makes her a little dizzy. Coco's eyes flutter open a moment later, face red and golden eyes shining, half-lidded.

“Wow…” is what she says, still holding Agott's hand. Agott doesn't know if it's good or bad. “Uhm– That was… something.”

Ah. 

Agott feels her face heat up in embarrassment, and she pulls her hand away from Coco's face. Is she a bad kisser? Oh God, she's a bad kisser.

“I– I'm sorry– I don't know what I'm doing–” She almost wants to cry, taking her hand back and almost curling into herself from shame. “I– We don't need to do it again–”

“Whoa, hey! What's wrong? Why are you apologizing?” Coco puts her hand on Agott's arm, the touch sending shivers down the shorter teen's spine.

“I– For being a bad kisser!” She looks at Coco incredulously. “I made your first kiss experience horrible! I'm so sorry!”

“What?” Coco tilts her head in confusion. “No! You're a great kisser, Agott.” 

She halts at that. “What?”

“At least, in my non-existent standards.” Coco explains, “But I know there can be worse, and way more unpleasant experiences, and yours wasn't any of that, by far! So, uhm… you're a great kisser in my eyes, yes.”

Agott wants to melt into the bed sheets. There is no way this is reality. She feels like she is going to vomit hundreds of times in a row.

They fall into silence, Coco's hand still holding her arm. Agott feels her hands slowly travel down towards her hand.

“Do you… want to try aga–”

“I need to go,” Agott says in a panic, startling Coco as she gets up from her bed and grabs her backpack, shoving the script of the play she had put on the floor inside the bag without a care. “Can we meet up tomorrow? I-I just need time to polish my monologues.”

“Of course. Uhm– Do you want me to walk you to the door or–”

“No need.” Agott interrupts her, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. She refuses to look at Coco's face.

“Okay.” Coco sounds a bit defeated, but lets go anyway. “Take care, then! See you tomorrow!”

Agott nods quickly, turning and leaving through the bedroom door, letting the door slam closed behind her as she races downstairs, face heating up again. 

She is leaving early enough that she sees Coco's mother parking in the front, who smiles at her, but Agott can't face her now. Not when she just kissed her daughter. She wouldn't be able to look composed.

So she just gives her an awkward smile and a wave before running down the street, just in time for her bus arriving at the usual stop she takes. 

She pays her fare and sits in the back, trying to avoid everyone even though it's impossible for any of the strangers to know the dilemma and screaming happening inside her head.

Coco kissed her. Coco's lips are soft, and she kisses gently like Agott is something precious. She told Agott she's a great kisser.

Agott kissed Coco, and it wasn't because Agott had stopped chickening out and told her about her feelings. But because of a play.

She groans into her hands. God, what has she done? How is she supposed to do this every time they rehearse the ending? How is she supposed to kiss Coco every day for the next 7 days and never again? 

She bites her lip hard and feels her phone vibrate in the pocket of her backpack. A message from Coco lights the screen.

Agott is about to respond, but typing bubbles appear and reappear for moments before finally a few new messages come through.

Agott squeals into her hand, not caring if people around her stare at her. She doesn't look at her phone again until she is back home.

· · ─ ·৻ꪆ· ─ · ·

“Agott! Do you have a moment?”

Agott looks up from her phone at Mr. Qifrey’s voice, pocketing her phone to give her teacher the attention he deserves. 

“Yes, is there a problem?” 

“What? No, no. On the contrary!” He clasped his hands, a bright smile on his face. “I was really impressed by you and Coco's scene! When she told me she had a surprise, I didn't expect that you two would be showing the actual kiss.”

Agott feels her face heat up, the memory fresh in her mind. She recorded every kiss she shared as Romeo to Coco's Juliet in her mind for the last two days. 

“I– Thank you. I'm glad it's to your liking, sir.”

“It is!” He puts a hand on her shoulder. “I'm very proud of your courage to put yourself in the spotlight, especially for something like this.”

Agott nods, feeling embarrassed for a new reason. At that, her teacher patted her shoulder and gave her a small smile.

“Could you fetch Coco and Tetia for me? The two of them are next to rehearse.” 

“Of course.” Agott nodded, getting up from her seat and walking the path to the backstage area. 

The others are in a rush; scripts scattered around, props and scenarios moved near the entrance. She spots, coming from the dressing room, a flurry of pink curls. 

“Tetia!” Agott moves in between the other students as the taller girl looks up from her script.

“Oh, hi Agott! Do you need anything?”

“Yeah, Mr. Qifrey wants you on stage. You and Coco have a scene to rehearse.”

“Oh, of course! I'll go right away!” She nods, getting up from the chair and dragging her dress from the floor, and that's when she realizes Tetia is wearing her costume, a long dark pink dress that covers her arms with an apron on the front tied to her waist. 

Right, she forgot that today is the day Coco's mother was bringing the costumes so they could be worn during rehearsals and for last-minute fittings.

“Tetia!” Agott shouts back when Tetia is already halfway across the way to the stage, making the girl turn back to look at her. “Is Coco in the dressing room?”

She nods. “Yeah!”

“Okay! Thanks!” Tetia throws her a thumbs up and turns back to her path.

Agott walks toward the dressing room with the sign that says ‘Girls’, knocking on the door before walking in. “Excuse me, is Coco here?”

The first person she sees isn't Coco, but rather her mother, who looks up from her spot where she is kneeling on the floor as she pins back some fabric on Richeh’s costume.

“Agott! I was about to go look for you!” She says, putting another pin in and grabbing a needle with a thread.

“Me?” 

“Yes, I need you to try on your costume to see if anything needs fitting.” 

“Richeh lost weight,” Richeh says, meeting Agott's eyes.

“I see, well I'm here.” She closes the door behind her, clasping her hands in front of her.

“Good!” She ties the thread in her hand before cutting it. “Did you say you were looking for Coco?”

“Yes, Mr. Qifrey needs her on stage.”

“Ah, shi- shoot!” Agott hears someone coming from behind the changing booth's curtain, a hand pushing it open and–

Oh. 

Coco is wearing her Juliet costume, the green dress with golden and white accents bringing out the color of her skin and hair, which is stylized and a bit more wavy than usual. 

Agott wants to frame her effortless beauty. But instead of doing that, she just stares. 

She feels an elbow hit her stomach, breaking the trance. She looks in the direction of the perpetrator and finds Richeh looking at her with a blank stare. 

“It's rude to stare.” She whispers, and Agott hopes Coco didn't listen. 

Agott wants to put her friend in a headlock. “I-I’m not staring at her! I was just staring at…” Agott looks around, focusing on a shelf with unused props beside the changing booth. “At that shelf behind her! It’s not my fault she’s in the way!”

Richeh raises an eyebrow at her, and again, Agott wants to fight her. But instead of that, she turns to Coco again, who is looking for something in the arrangement of accessories on one of the dressing tables.

Finally, she finds two earrings and turns to the mirror to put them on, finally noticing Agott in the mirror's reflection, turning to face her with a smile that could blind a thousand people.

“Hey, Agott!” She puts the earrings down and approaches her castmate, leaning forward with a smile. “Are you here to try on your costume?”

“Y-Yeah, I think so–” She turns around to ask Coco’s mother, but she’s gone. 

“Well, I’ve seen it! You’re going to look amazing in it, trust me.” Agott feels like she needs to sit down at her words. Coco straightens her back, seemingly oblivious to her dilemma, and gives a twirl in her dress, showing it off to both Agott and Richeh. “What do you think? A truly Juliet-worthy costume, huh?”

Agott blinks once, then twice, eyes focused on the way Coco’s eyes shine with endearment at the garment. “Y-Yeah, you look…” Agott breathes out, brain fog clouding the logical part of her brain because the next words escape without intent: “...absolutely breathtaking.”

Coco stops her twirl at her words, looking at her best friend with wide eyes, a red tint appearing in her face and spreading down her neck. It takes a moment for Agott to even realise what she just said, taking a step back and raising her hands defensively, her face probably as red as a tomato. “Uh– I mean, you look fine– Well, not fine, that sounds bad– The dress is beautiful, but not just the dress! You too! Like, you get what I me–”

Richeh’s hand comes up to cover her mouth. “Stop, for all of our sakes.” 

She nods, closing her eyes as Richeh removes the hand. Coco, on the other hand, was still a bit taken aback, frozen in place, mouth slightly agape as she stared at Agott with something Agott couldn't quite describe. She wasn't sure if it was good or bad.

Coco’s mother appearing from outside the dressing room and carrying Agott’s costume interrupts whatever was happening between the two of them. She approaches Agott and offers the bundle in her hands, “Agott, would you be a dear and try the costume?”

At the request, Agott simply nods, avoiding meeting Coco’s eyes as she passed by her to enter the changing booth. Quickly as she could, she changed into her outfit, a bit confused by the layers and lace-ups, but she considers that she could just ask Coco’s mother.

She exits the booth, a bit awkwardly. “Ma’am, can you help me with–”

Coco’s mother is nowhere to be seen; only Coco remains, back at the dressing table, putting on the earrings from earlier and meeting Agott’s gaze in the mirror’s reflection. She turns to her, looking her friend up and down in the costume.

“Uh, Coco, where’s your mother? I kinda need help with lacing up and the layers.” She asks Coco, who blinks a few times before shaking her head.

“She got a call from a client and went outside to take it.” Coco approaches her. “I can help you with those, if you need.”

“Oh, yes, thank you.”

Coco’s skillful hands quickly work, lacing Agott’s sleeves and the overcoat piece, Agott holding her breath and staring at Coco’s focused face.

“There.” She whispers, putting her hands on the collar of Agott’s shirt, tidying it up before turning her, making the girl face herself in the full-body mirror that’s in the dressing room and–

Agott almost gasps at the sight. She looks… good. The shades of purple and the silver detailing of the outfit work to bring out her eyes. No wonder Coco’s mother is such a busy woman; it feels like she does literal magic with her job.

“Told you, you look amazing, Agott,” Coco whispers, hands on Agott’s shoulders, and now that they’re side by side, Agott can’t help but see a proper depiction of Romeo and Juliet in front of her. Coco’s hands travel to hold her arms. “Can you help me with something?”

Agott turns to face her. “Of course, what is it?”

Coco smiles at her, a hand reaching into the hidden pocket of the skirt of her dress and revealing a golden necklace with a few pearls and a ‘C’ pendant. “Can you help me put it on?”

Agott nods, taking the necklace from her hands while Coco turns and holds her hair to her front, showing the back of her neck to Agott, who gulps nervously. Her hands tremble nervously as she reaches around, verifying if the pendant is on the correct side. Somehow, despite her fingers almost letting the clasp fall, she is able to close it, awkwardly patting Coco’s shoulder as a sign.

The girl turns, putting her hair back in place. “Thank you, Agott. My Romeo is such a gentleman.” She says with a laughter and Agott covers her mouth with her fist, a bit embarrassed.

“Well, it’s in character, no?” Agott can’t help but hide her smile.

Coco makes an amused sound, smirking down at her, a hand resting near her neck while the other brushes a stray dark lock of hair back in place. “True, just don’t go dying for me. I would most likely miss you.”

Agott opens her mouth to retort with a joke, but she is suddenly very aware that their faces are just a few inches apart and– damn it, the memories of their constant kissing crash into the forefront of her mind again. She wants to be able to kiss Coco without a scene or roles attached to them so much.

“Coco, will–”

“Coco!” The calling comes from outside the dressing room as it slowly opens. Tetia stands in the doorway, eyes closed and a pout, “Coco! Mr. Qifrey has been waiting for you! Did Agott not tell you–” She stops when she notices the predicament both girls are in. “Oh.” Her pout is replaced by a bright smile. “You know what? Never mind that! Take all the time you both need!”

“Tetia!” Coco chastises her, but the pink-haired girl is already out the door. She sighs loudly and turns to Agott. “Sorry– I need to go, I completely forgot about the scene.”

“M-Me too.” She rubs the back of her neck as Coco puts some distance between the two of them, giving Agott one last look over her shoulder before closing the door. 

Agott squeaks out an embarrassing sound, holding tight to a chair so as not to fall down onto the floor, her legs trembling. 

“What the fuck was that?” She whispers to herself, looking at her reflection in the mirror. Her face is slowly reddening like she stuck her head in a hot, steaming pot. The images of what just happened cloud her mind, replaying over and over again.

She lets out a loud groan because– Well, if Agott would indulge and allow her brain to potentially lie to itself, she could've sworn she saw Coco's eyes looking at her lips.

· · ─ ·৻ꪆ· ─ · ·

When the curtains close on that Friday night, it feels bittersweet. Agott and Coco are the last ones on the curtain call, as is tradition, and even when the applause intensifies because of them, Agott can’t help but feel the pit in her stomach. She says her goodbyes to the public along with her castmates, staying behind as it's the norm to help with setting everything down and organizing things so the theater is back in its original state from that morning.

When it's done, Agott feels like she is missing a part of herself.

She bids goodbye when everyone starts going home, deciding to do it as well. If she is going to wallow in sadness for the ending of the school year in a couple of weeks along with the production, she might as well do it at home.

It’s almost nine when she leaves the school grounds, her feet heavy and dragging against the slightly damp pavement from what seemed to be an early rain while they were all busy. She looks up to the sky; dark grey clouds gather around, telling her that rain is most likely on the way again.

She looks at both sides of the road, not seeing any cars, so she can cross it–

“Agott!”

Coco’s voice halts Agott as she turns, seeing her friend crossing the school gates and waving her arm high above her head. She decides to wait until Coco is standing in front of her to respond to her call.

“Oh, hey, Coco. Do you need something?” Agott tries to mask her bad mood with a bit of a chipper tone in her voice, but she realizes too late that she sounded weird when Coco’s eyebrow raised and she tilted her head in confusion.

“What? No, no! I was just wondering if you don’t mind me accompanying you to the bus stop.”

“Oh, yeah, no, no, I don’t mind.” She tilts her head in the direction she was just going. Coco gives her a smile, tightening her grip on her backpack and following Agott.

“Sooo…” Coco starts midway through their short walk, “Did you like the show?”

“Yeah, it went pretty great.” Despite the bittersweet feelings, she would be lying if she said it went without a hitch.

“...Did you like playing your first protagonist?” 

‘What's up with all the questions?’ is what Agott wants to ask Coco, but she knows she has always been pretty open and talkative, so Agott isn't sure if something has changed or if her bad mood is just making her notice it as something out of the ordinary when it isn't.

So she decides not to question it, “...Yes. It was very thrilling, despite all the work that went into it.”

“That’s great to hear!” Coco smiled at her. “I remember when I felt that for the first time; it was pretty awesome.”

Silence accompanied them again, Agott seeing the bus stop she always takes to her house just a minute or so in the distance. 

She can almost feel like Coco wants to ask her something else, but before she can urge the girl to just get it out, she feels a wet drop on her cheek. She looks up, kinda expecting it to be a drop from the rain from earlier that fell from a tree, but another drop followed by another and another confirms it is not the case.

She yelps, bringing her forearm to protect the top of her head as Coco realizes the predicament at the same time. 

“Shit– Did you bring an umbrella?” Her best friend turns to ask her, covering her head with her hands.

“No?! Why would I bring an umbrella, Coco?!” Agott asks incredulously while looking around, feeling the rain pick up a heavy pace. They could run to the stop. It's not that far, but it doesn't have a cover; they'd just be waiting in the rain. Her bus won't be here for another twenty minutes anyway.

“I don’t know, you’re always so prepared!” Coco argues, also looking in the direction of the stop, likely coming to the same conclusion as her friend. “Damn it, my bus doesn’t pass for another fifteen minutes– Wait!” She stops, seemingly realizing something and grabbing Agott's hand into hers, urging her to follow her. “Come on, I know a place!”

Agott doesn't question it, tightening the grip on her hand and holding onto her backpack strap. 

They run through the rain, splashing the water around until Coco is dragging her through the gates of a park.

“Wait– Why are we coming in here?!”

“There’s this gazebo! It's the closest covered place! Just– Trust me, okay?!”

Agott swallows her pride and does as she's told.

After a few moments, she spots the gazebo in the middle of the park, badly lit by streetlights that flicker around, with bugs dancing in its brightness. Finally, they reach the inside, Agott almost slipping on the wet stone stairs that lead inside, grateful that Coco is keeping her tethered by holding her hand.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Coco says, letting go of her hand and pushing wet strands of her hair back in place. The hoodie she wears on top of her shirt is dark from the rain; the same applies to her shoes and the front of her shorts. Coco removes the hoodie and wraps it around her waist, shivering when a breeze picks up. “I think I’m gonna catch a cold.”

“Right when summer break starts, that's unfortunate,” Agott says, annoyed at her wet hair as she tries to put it back into place.

“Mmhm.”

They stay in silence as Coco drops her backpack in the center of the gazebo in hopes of keeping it dry from the rain. Agott does the same and watches as she removes her phone from her pocket and sets a timer, most likely for when she needs to leave to catch her bus.

“Do you think it will pass soon?” Coco asks her after a few moments of silence.

“I– No idea. It’s raining pretty badly.” She replies, sticking her head outside the gazebo just enough to try to get a look.

Coco curses under her breath, “I should at least text my mom and tell her I think I’ll be late.”

“Me too.” Although she isn't ready for the sermon, she'll probably get one even though it's not her fault that rain suddenly started pouring. Her mother wasn't happy with her staying after hours; she wouldn't be happy that Agott would be even later getting home. But regardless, Agott fetched her phone and typed a quick text to her mother before closing the app and throwing it back in her bag, not excited to see the response.

Coco sets her phone next to her own backpack after presumably texting her mother and approaches Agott, who has her back against one of the columns of the gazebo, not caring if rain hits her.

“Agott, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah?” 

Violet meets golden, and for a moment, Coco seems unsure of what to ask. But finally, she does

“Why did you look… I don't know– Unhappy after the show?”

“Huh?” Agott knows there's no hiding it, but she can’t help that her first instinct is to try to hide what is obvious.

“Yeah– It's why I asked you earlier if you liked the results of the show. Or if you liked playing a protagonist.”

“Oh.”

“It's just–” Coco opened her mouth to say something, before closing it again along with her eyes. She seemed to be looking for the correct words to say next. “I know it can be bittersweet, okay? The feeling of finishing something you've worked on so hard, getting back into a life without it, is sad. So I just wanted to check if you're, like, okay.” Silence again. “...Are you?”

“...Yeah.” The word comes out a bit choked.

“You don't sound too confident about it.”

Coco’s words echo in Agott’s mind as she breaks their shared gaze, crossing her arms, nails digging into her skin as she bites her lip. Coco seems determined to let Agott speak next, because she is just standing there, in front of her, not saying anything even after a whole minute has passed. 

Agott bites her lip hard, her chest and lungs hurting a bit before she lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding and breaks the silence between them.

“I– I guess you're right about part of it. I'm gonna miss the rehearsals, I'm going to miss the discussions about the characters during lunch breaks, I–” She tries to look at Coco but the next words seem impossible to get out while looking at her face, so she looks at her shoes, “I'm going to miss our evenings rehearsing our scenes until our voices got hoarse and new lines wouldn't enter our brains until your mother made us dinner.”

“Oh, Agott…” Coco whispers, taking a step closer.

“It's kinda stupid; we're still friends and truly, during summer, we will have even more time for this stuff, but still…” She doesn’t know how to end her train of thought, so she just lets her voice trail off until they’re again sitting in silence with each other, the rain being their sole symphony.

Then, Coco walks until she is standing right in front of Agott, a hand taking one of hers that was still digging into her skin and squeezing it.

“Let's do it again, then. One last time.”

Her voice is so soft and delicate that Agott feels like she could break if she says the wrong thing, meeting her eyes again, confused about what Coco means.

“What?”

Coco lets go of her hands, taking excited steps back, closing her eyes in a way that Agott has gotten so used to seeing, taking a few deep breaths before she snaps her eyes open, a completely different look on her face, giddiness replaced with a mixture of longing and sadness.

“Oh, Romeo, Romeo, why must you be Romeo?” She dramatically puts the back of her hand to her forehead, the other over her heart.

“God, are you really doing it?” Agott chuckles, rolling her eyes at her best friend, who glares at her with a pout.

“Shh, let me finish if you're not going to say your lines!” Agott laughs again, tilting her head, but lets Coco continue, who resumes her previous soft expression, “Deny your father and give up your name. Or, if you won’t change your name, just swear your love to me, and I’ll give up being a Capulet. Only your name is my enemy–”

“You know, that's sad. I like my name.” Agott interrupts with a smirk on her lips, and Coco once again glares daggers at her, although Agott knows there is no true harm in it.

“You're impossible. What did I say?” Agott shrugs her shoulders, moving from her place against the column and walking towards the entrance of the gazebo, watching rain fall against the steps as Coco continues, “What's in a name? That which we call…” Coco pauses, looking at Agott with a small smile that was not fit for such a scene, “...a fool would still be a fool by any other name.”

“Harsh.” She jokes under her breath, turning to look at Coco, the habit she had created from hearing those lines almost puppeteering her body on its own.

“So even if Romeo had some other name, she would still be perfect. Romeo, take off your name, which really has no connection to who you are, and take all of me instead.”

Her eyes find Agott, who just sighs with a smile before a more serious expression replaces it. “I take you at your word. If you call me your love, I’ll take a new name. From now on I’ll never again be Romeo.”

Coco smiles at her, delighted that Agott decided to follow her in this impromptu ad-lib session of theirs. She shakes her head and replaces her happiness with surprise. “Who are you, hiding in this… Cold, badly lit gazebo and eavesdropping on my private thoughts that I am freely speaking out loud?”

Agott holds back her laughter, putting her hands in her pockets. “It is rather hard to tell you who I am since you just said you hate my name, dear. I think you can call me a fool, then.”

Coco laughs at that before catching herself and clearing her throat, seemingly racking her brain for her next lines. “I haven't even heard you say a hundred words yet, but I do recognize the sound of your voice.” Coco takes a couple of steps closer, leaning on an imaginary balcony. “Aren’t you Romeo, the Montague?”

Something about the question makes Agott feel the butterflies dance in her stomach uncomfortably, as she takes a few steps back on instinct. “Neither. Actually... right now I'm just Agott.”

Coco smiles softly at that, brushing a strand of her hair out of her face. “Then forget Romeo, tell me what Agott would say.”

Agott chuckles nervously at that. “That's dangerous.”

“Why?”

“Because… Agott doesn't have a script on what to say.” She shrugs her shoulders, refusing to meet Coco’s eyes. 

She, on the other hand, doesn't seem too worried about that, as she lets out a genuine but small laugh. “Good. I don't want Romeo's answer. I want yours.”

At that, Agott opens her mouth, intending to say something, but no words come out; the lump in her throat is too hard to swallow and too big to let what Coco is asking of her come out. So she closes her mouth, gripping her thumbs hooking into her belt loops harder as her hands shake.

Coco sighs at her silence, but it isn’t an embarrassed or exasperated one. It’s soft, delicate, and once again, Agott is worried she will shatter it if she does something wrong.  “I guess... This is only fair to say, but I'm not really Juliet anymore, either. I’m just Coco, now.”

‘Just Coco’, as if Coco isn’t the most wonderful person she knows and probably will know, Agott thinks to herself in the silence that follows. There’s no ‘just Coco’, because that would imply Coco is ordinary and there is nothing ordinary about the girl standing in front of her.

“A-And what does Coco want to know?” Agott’s voice shakes a bit. She has a feeling that whatever happens next will change things between them for good. And that is deeply scary in so many ways.

Coco looks at her, eyes determined and yet softer than they've ever been before. She looks away as she takes a step closer to Agott, her hands clasped in front of her, taking and releasing a deep breath whose sound seems to rival the sounds of nature around them, even though that is physically impossible.

“Do you think… Romeo truly liked Juliet or was she just pretending for a silly play with their high school drama club friends?” 

Agott feels her face heat up almost instantly, and she instinctively takes another step back, her feet half on the gazebo and half on the stone stairs, not caring now that the rain is pouring on her, because all she can see, hear, and think of is Coco. 

“I–”

“Because…” Another step closer, and golden eyes finally meet hers again. “...Juliet stopped pretending after they shared their first kiss.”

“Coco…” Is all Agott can say, and when Coco takes another step closer, she doesn’t step back.

“Did every kiss Romeo shared make her feel like it was the right thing?” Coco stares down at her, her expression almost painful. “Because for Juliet it was. It made her feel like she belonged right there and then, no place else at no time else.

Agott’s heart is beating so fast, and her legs feel so weak– She grips the column next to her as an anchor, not daring to break the gaze she and Coco share.

“So please answer, not as Romeo,” A step closer, “but as the girl I’ve liked since we were in seventh grade.” Another step. “As the girl who I shared my first kiss with,” And another. “And as the girl who I truly hope I’ve not been misreading the signs from.” 

Coco is right in front of her now, taller than usual due to the steps Agott had gone down, rain pouring down her dark forest green hair.

“Agott… Do you like me?”

The question echoes and has the same intensity as hearing the first clap of thunder during a storm— Even though you saw the lightning, even though you saw the signs, it is just as impactful.

Agott grips the column in her hand harder, short nails scraping against the white paint as she takes a deep breath, closes her eyes, finally swallowing the lump in her throat and allowing an actual answer to escape her lips as she opens her eyes, determination and adrenaline pumped straight into her bloodstream.

“…I do.”

Coco’s smile at her reply could rival a thousand suns, her voice coming out next a bit shaky and watery. “That’s good. Because, as Juliet liked her Romeo, I like my Agott so, so, much.”

Agott blinks up at her, gulping down the reality of what just happened. She is barely keeping it together in one piece when Coco lets out a nervous laugh and tries to get even closer, but ends up slipping on the stairs, Agott catching her by her waist, setting her down at the same level as her outside the gazebo, rain falling on them.

“Coco! God– be careful!” Agott chastises her, the nervousness replaced by worry.

“S-Sorry!” Coco apologizes with a giggle. “It's just kinda slippery. I’m fine.” 

Agott lets out a relieved breath at that, lowering her head and loosening her grip on Coco’s waist, who she just realized she was holding tight to. A mortified sound leaves her throat, catching Coco’s attention. Instead of relieving Agott’s embarrassment, Coco smiles down at her with a smirk.

“Guess you can say I…” a pause, “…fell for you.”

The mortified sound is replaced by an annoyed groan that quickly turns into laughter along with Coco’s own.

When their stomachs start to hurt from laughing, Agott opens her eyes and finds Coco staring down at her with nothing but love in her eyes before fluttering them closed and joining their foreheads together. The intimacy of the act makes Agott shiver.

“Coco…”

“Yes?” The girl replies in a whisper, not opening her eyes as their foreheads continue together. 

“Can…” Agott swallows the embarrassment she feels, too late for this kind of feeling. “Can I hear you say it again? Please?”

“Say what?” Eyes open and meet violet ones, separating their foreheads as she tilts her head. “That I like you?”

An embarrassed sound. That's the description of the noise Agott lets out at the words. She will need to get used to it. 

And Coco seems willing to help her with the exposure therapy, because quickly she echoes it again, “I like you so much, Agott.”

Despite the flustering, Agott feels her lips curl into a smile. “I like you too, Coco. A lot.” 

Coco lets out a giddy giggle, kissing her nose affectionately and making Agott laugh. The green-haired girl pulls back, her soft smile fading into a smirk that makes Agott worried.

“So… A little bird told me you're a great kisser.”

“Stoooop!” Agott teases back, feeling her face heat up at the inner joke they now shared. 

“But, Agott! Won't you let me know if it's true?” She whines in a clearly joking tone before her expression turns serious for a moment, staring into violet eyes. “Do you know how sad I was when Mr. Qifrey removed the scene where Juliet corresponds to the kiss? One of the worst afternoons of my life, I genuinely thought you just hated the idea of kissing me.”

“I was embarrassed for… other reasons,” Agott explains, despite knowing she most likely does not need to, and Coco confirms it.

“I know that now. So, please, allow me to correspond to it?”

Almost as second nature, her hands hold Coco’s cheek as they did almost a week ago, but even then, the feeling is new because of the rain. Agott feels her hands shake a bit but finally closes the distance between them, eyes closing shut and seemingly surprising Coco because she lets out a tiny gasp before fully and finally leaning into it.

Coco still tastes like her grape chapstick, some reminiscence of the lipstick of the makeup from the show and rain. Her hands travel from Agott's waist to her arm, leaving goosebumps in their wake and then finally tangling her fingers in her messy wet curls, deepening the kiss by somehow bringing them impossibly closer. 

Agott is pretty sure she lets out an embarrassing noise at that because Coco's lips briefly take the shape of a smirk against hers. 

It feels almost sacrilegious to pull away from it, Agott thinks, scared that she will pull away and the reality that this is not real will hit her. But she has to; her brain screams over the emotional fog that was created when their lips touched for the first time without an excuse, her lungs hurting as she takes painful breaths to fill them.

She opens her eyes and finds Coco's closed, wet strands sticking to her forehead and cheeks, who are flushed in a way that is very clear despite the darkness around them. Agott wishes they weren't doing this in a place like this; she wants to see every detail of Coco's face that's affected by their kissing, she–

The girl's eyes flutter open and stare at her, half-lidded and with only a sliver of gold around big dark pupils that makes Agott’s head spin.

Agott raises her hand, brushing away a strand of her hair despite her trembling hand, and Coco meets her there, pressing her own against hers, essentially making Agott's touch stuck there. Not that she is complaining.

Coco nuzzles into the touch, lips touching her palm. “Hey.” She whispers, completely aware of how the action just made Agott's heart rate jump to levels she didn't think would be possible to reach without immediately being sent to a hospital.

“Hi.” Her voice is shaky, and God, if Coco were anyone else, it would feel humiliating. But it is Coco, and right now, Agott knows that she must feel something similar.

They keep staring into each other's eyes for a good while, ignoring the world around them, ignoring that Coco's alarm for the bus she set fifteen minutes ago is going off in her backpack. 

“I want to kiss you again,” Agott admits, leaning their foreheads together.

“I want you to do that. I want to kiss you once for each time I could not return it. And more, many more times, until I can't count.”

Agott feels like she is going to pass out, hit her head on the stone stairs, and go into a coma.

“T-That’s nice–” Gods, that's a terrible way to reply to that. She spent the last three months reading up on Shakespeare, surely she should be able to do better. “But I think we're going to be sick if we don't get out of this rain.”

“Do you… Want to go to my house? I feel like– We need to talk about this. About us.”

“Y-Yeah. I want that. I don't think my mother will mind it.” 

In actuality, Agott doesn't know that for sure, but she will face the wrath of a thousand angry mothers if it means more time with Coco, with the girl who admitted to wanting to kiss her many more times.

Grabbing their backpacks and hand in hand walking out in the rain, not caring about it now that their clothes are impossible to get more ruined.

The bus for Coco’s house arrives just as they reach the stop, Coco dragging Agott inside so they do not miss it. After paying for their tickets, they apologize to the conductor for the possible mess they might create, who only gruffs in response. The girls share a look before smiling, and drag each other to a secluded double seat against a window.

Coco almost immediately leans her head against Agott’s shoulder, sighing in what feels like relief. From what? She can’t be sure.

But as the night lights pass by, the familiar road to Coco’s house passing by her eyes, Agott feels a squeeze in her hand that is being held by Coco and a shared gaze between them in the midst of a crowd of tired people in a bus, Agott feels her body relax, squeezing Coco’s hand back as she lets the rumble of the engine and the rain hitting the window by her side calm her heart.

The sun will rise tomorrow, on a Saturday that will look the same for everyone else. But it won't be the same for them.

For while the sun didn't shine for Romeo and Juliet's ending, Agott hopes it will for Coco and hers. 

She truly hopes so.