When The Reality Hits

Description: Naomi realizes that Juliet has to fall for Paris.

Rating: G

Characters: Son Dongwoon, Lee Taemin and OC

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in the fiction. The story is only a narrative and does not involve any real life situation. The whole plot of the story is written originally by myself. If there's any similarity to other fictions, it is totally a coincidence. Full credits to Shakespeare for his work.

Naomi runs as fast as she can when she gets down from the bus. She knows very well that her day will be so unfortunate. She woke up late this morning and sadly left her breakfast unattended on the dining table. The bus came a bit late at the nearest stop to her home and now she is late again for her lecture.

People often say that when you are late for a lecture you better not come at all because you are already marked absence on the attendance by the time you reach the lecture room. So, there’s no point coming right? But, Naomi doesn’t think that way. With her result only up to the average level, and she is still adapting with university life, she thinks it might be the best if she is present at each class, even though she is marked absent.

However, she has been marked present until today, although she comes late to class sometimes. A best friend of her likes to help, in making her attendance perfect.

She sneaks into her lecture hall, hoping her lecturer won’t notice her movement. One wrong step and she’s over and Dongwoon is over as well. He already signed for her in the attendance, she is sure about that. If she doesn’t pull a perfect cover, Dongwoon might have to face disciplinary action, just because he’s trying to help.

“Yah, morning,” she whispers to Dongwoon when she manages to sneak in to a seat beside Dongwoon.

“Morning. You’re late again,” he points out the fact.

“I’m sorry. My attendance?” she asks.

“Settled,” he whispers. She smiles at once. Dongwoon is reliable, she thinks.

She listens to the lecture and as she turns around, she could see some of her classmates are already out of focus. Some of them are sleeping, some of them are doodling on their notes, while some others are texting through their phones. That is it. Life as students is always boring, in her opinion. Students wake up early in the morning, go for lectures, then do homework in the library and go home and do assignment and sleep and the routines repeat by themselves the next day. But, she knows she can’t run away from it.

Anyway, today is a bit different. She has an audition in the evening, for the college’s production. It is for their charity programme. A theatre to raise money for the spastic children, and she really wants to take part in it.

“Are you going for the audition this evening?” asks Naomi to Dongwoon when the lecture ends.

“Romeo and Juliet?”

“Yeah. I’m going,” she says.

“Great. I’m going as well. I want to try out for Romeo. I want to be the main cast,” Dongwoon says with a smirk.

“Ooohhh…how ambitious you are. I want to be the main cast too. I’ll make sure I’ll be Juliet,” Naomi exclaims.

“I am very sure you’ll get to be Juliet. You have it in you,” Dongwoon encourages his best friend.

“Hey, Naomi! The result is already out. It is on the information board! I think you’re chosen as Juliet. I heard it from somebody just now!” exclaims her friend.

“Really? Where’s Dongwoon? He needs to know about this!” Naomi starts to shouts hysterically while running to the information board.

She’s not yet arrived but someone has already approached her. Dongwoon runs towards her with a face brighter than the sun.

“Oh my God! Naomi! You made it! You’re Juliet!” he hugs her.

“Really?! I need to see it myself,” she runs with him to the board and upon seeing her name as Juliet on the board, she shouts cheerfully.

“Oh my God! I’m Juliet! But, who’s Romeo?” she looks again at the board.

“Lee Taemin? Not you Dongwoon?” she looks at her best friend.

“Nah…I’m Count Paris. See?” he points to his name.

“That’s bad…I thought we could act as Romeo and Juliet. But, who is this Lee Taemin anyway?” she asks.

“A guy from the Faculty of Science I think,” Dongwoon guesses based on his knowledge about students in the college.

And Dongwoon actually gets it right.

It is their first training session for the production. The teacher is giving them the script, to get them familiar with the flow of the story. But, everyone knows the story of two young lovers, who are very passionate, but their love is not approved and it has to end with a tragedy. Such a sad story penned down by Shakespeare, but the fame is indescribable.

“Now, now! Where’s our Romeo?” asks the teacher.

Dongwoon and Naomi are too absorbed by the script until they don’t realise that Romeo is not yet present. Both of them look at the teacher and raise their shoulders, indicating they don’t know Taemin’s whereabouts. Right at that moment, the door bursts open.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry Madam. The lecture ends quite late. I promise I won’t be late again,” Taemin bows to the teacher.

At the first sight, Naomi is mesmerized by Taemin’s good look. His brown strand of hair is shining like gold in her eyes and his skin looks so smooth and milky. His voice is definitely something that catches her attention and Naomi thinks she likes her Romeo straight away.

“Hey, Naomi!” she is shocked by Dongwoon’s loud voice.

“What?” she asks. He laughs.

“Seriously? You look at him like you want to grab him into your pocket straight away,” he says with laugh.

“Yah! Dongwoon-ah! Aish!” she slaps his arm.

“Ouch. That hurts,” he resumes his laugh. Naomi feels embarrassed, “Looks like someone here won’t have problem to be the best Juliet!” Dongwoon exclaims with a smirk.

The room is filled with music for ballroom dancing. Naomi is ready to get into her part in the Scene V. She wants to get this done by today. She just has to do it well and go home and rest.

“If I profane with my unworthiest hand

This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this:

My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand

To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.”

Taemin says his line and extends his hand for Juliet to take it. Naomi takes his hand and instead of feeling the rough skin as he says in his line, she feels a very smooth touch.

“Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much,

Which mannerly devotion shows in this;

For saints have hands that pilgrims’ hand do touch,

And palm to palm is holy palmers’ kiss.”

Naomi replies Taemin as what is written in the given script. However, that is what she really means. His hand is very tender and she could feel his smooth palm on her own palm. The scene continues with a ballroom dance which takes place right after that. It is a good feeling to dance with Taemin. He is a very good dancer. His movements are very graceful and she is captivated by them. And more and more dialogues before they say their last dialogue, before Romeo and Juliet have to part.

“Then have my lips the scene that they have took.”

Says Juliet.

“Sin from my lips? O trespass sweetly urg’d!

Give me my sin again.”

Right after the dialogue, Taemin holds her face and kisses her deeply. Naomi tries her best not to shock, or worse, to laugh. Instead, she kisses him back, just for the sake of the training. She promises to do her best and she’ll do it. They let go after a few seconds and Romeo moves to his next line while Juliet goes to her mother.

And finally the training session ends greatly. They applaud for themselves for all the efforts they put on to make every scene perfect. Although it doesn’t involve all scenes yet but they think it is a good start for the charity theatre.

“Nice start, people. See you again tomorrow, same time, same place,” the teacher says.

“Wow, Naomi! You did great! Just now it was just…wow!” Dongwoon praises Naomi.

“You were good as well Count Paris,” Naomi wipes her sweat with her towel.

“Hey, Naomi!”

She turns to the owner of the voice. She knows it is Taemin’s and she anticipates on why he calls her out of the blue.

“Yes?”

“Going anywhere after this?” he asks. Naomi looks at Dongwoon and he shrugs.

“I don’t think so. Why?” she asks back.

“I’m thinking of us going out. To practice our next scene together and make everything perfect, like today,” he says with a convincing smile. But, when he sees Dongwoon, his smile fades, “I mean only the two of us,” he resumes.

She looks at Dongwoon again. He smiles a very retarded smile and shrugs again. Naomi immediately takes that as an ‘ok’ and nods to Taemin.

“Sure. Where are we going?” she asks.

“Well…my mom has a dance studio. I think we can practice there and go for our dinner right after,” Taemin says.

“Fine. Dongwoon, see you tomorrow. And if I’m late, you know what should you do, right?” Naomi says, more like giving an instruction. Dongwoon nods and smiles, knowing he’s hurt inside.

“Lady, by yonder blessed moon I vow,

That tips with silver all these fruit tree tops-”

“O, swear not by the moon, th’ inconstant moon,

That monthly changes in her circled orb,

Lest that thy prove likewise variable.”

Juliet quickly cuts Romeo’s words and explains why he shouldn’t swear his love by the moon, because the moon disappears during the day and only presents at night.

“What shall I swear by?”

Asks Romeo curiously, with a frown on his forehead.

“Do not swear at all;

Or, if thou wilt, swear by thy gracious self,

Which is the god of my idolatry,

And I’ll believe thee.”

Juliet in return says that she worships Romeo as her idol and himself is enough without the swear he tries to make. Both of them go on with the romantic balcony scene until the coach yells his satisfaction.

“Bravo, team! Bravo! I feel it. I feel the strong love from the two young lovers. Bravo!” says the coach. They are given their rest before they start with the next scene.

“Hey, nice one, Naomi!” Dongwoon greets him. It has been a day long they don’t talk to each other. Not intentionally, but they were being separated into groups for fieldwork this morning. And they came back to the college for practice right after they finished their tasks.

“Of course. We did it yesterday,” Naomi winks.

“Owh…you mean with Taemin? How was yesterday? I heard he proposed you as…err…girlfriend. He is one hell of a guy, very fast. I wish I could be him,” says Dongwoon.

“Be him? You’re good by yourself,” she says.

“Yeah…but he is hot,” Dongwoon’s voice changes very low.

“I think so,” Naomi just doesn’t notice how desperate Dongwoon is.

“So…do you accept it? To be his girlfriend?” asks Dongwoon, very curious, like a kid wishing to know when he will receive a present from Santa. Naomi laughs.

“Well, I like him. But, there’s a missing piece in my heart. I ask him to give me time to answer and he says he could wait,” Naomi explains yesterday’s incident. Dongwoon sighs, relieve.

Don’t be too late when it comes to love.

It is almost the day of the stage and the crew productions are busy preparing for it – attires, lights, sounds, invitation, tickets and many more. Everybody is busy. The casts are now with their tailors, having their measurements taken, to get the best clothes that fit them. While the tailors moving the measuring tape all over their bodies, the scripts escape their mouths. No one dare to waste any more time. The stage has to be perfect.

“Go, get thee hence, for I will not away.

What’s here? A cup, clos’d in my true love’s hand?

Poison, I see, hath been his timeless end.

O churl! Drunk all, and left no friendly drop

To help me after? I will kiss thy lips;

Haply some poison yet doth hang on them,

To make me die with a restorative.

Thy lips are warm.”

Naomi practices her lines over and over again full with her heart. She wants to steal the audience on the day. And the more she’s doing it, the more she figures out to whom her heart is belonged to.

Naomi feels her shoulders are tensing. She’s in her tomb, acting as if she is died. She promises to do her best to be like a dead corpse, in the scene where Juliet is unconscious, as if dying, and Romeo visits her tomb. Paris comes, wanting to claim his right on Juliet, which he is supposed to married, except that Juliet is ‘dead’. Romeo claims his love for Juliet and they fights, literally, with swords.

Naomi knows she has to be dead, but she can’t help herself anymore. She opens her eyes into very narrow slits, just enough for her to watch the epic scene involving Dongwoon and Taemin. Dongwoon as Paris is very handsome and Taemin as Romeo is hot.

In Shakespeare’s mind, Romeo should win, but in her very own mind, she wants Paris to be alive and Romeo to be dead. She knows her heart now. It is for Dongwoon, only for Dongwoon.

Right after they receive a loud applause for their brilliant show, Naomi pulls Taemin to somewhere a bit hidden in the preparation room. She has to tell Taemin her feelings.

“I’ve made my decision,” she says.

“And?” he asks softly.

“I…can’t be your girlfriend,” Naomi says.

For a while, silent engulfs them, leaving no trace of sound, even the time freezes. Then, Taemin smiles and nods forcefully, but full with sincerity.

“I thought I am good enough. But, he is better than me I guess,” says Taemin while looking at the door. Naomi turns around to see Dongwoon stands at the door and looks so shocked.

“Oh…I’m sorry…I’ll leave,” he says and about to turns around.

“No, Dongwoon. My session in over. You’re on time. It’s your session now. I’ve…just lost,” Taemin says with a sincere smile and leaves. Naomi isn’t sure if she will get to see him again.

“I’m sorry…I didn’t mean to eavesdrop or to stalk on you guys. I just…it is really a coincidence,” Dongwoon stutters.

“It’s okay, Dongwoon. You’ve heard everything,” Naomi sighs.

“I thought he is your type,” Dongwoon argues.

“He is, but there’s a huge piece missing,” she says.

“Are you sure what you are talking about?” he asks.

Naomi sighs, noticing how slow Dongwoon is to understand the real situation. Or perhaps he understands, but denying, because he feels guilty towards Taemin.

“You know what, Dongwoon? If I can make a fanfic of Romeo and Juliet, I’ll make Juliet with Paris in the end. Shakespeare might be happier if he knows it.”

__________

heaDeVil^23

Mood: Spazzing on SHINee Sherlock and The Hunger Games