Wherefore art thou, Romeo? and Juliet?
What IF ROMEO and Juliet had lived ? Would their passion diminish, the way passion sometimes does, or grow stronger with every passing year? How would children have affected their relationship? Would parenthood, in fact, strengthen their love and mutual respect?
Of course it would.
Year One: Hoping to make their new house a home, Juliet goes a little crazy with the credit cards. Romeo spends a little too much time with his buddies. She pays $22,000 for a dining room table she found on sale. He joins a jousting team that competes two nights a week, usually Tuesdays and Thursdays.
"What happened to all the savings?" Romeo finally asks.
"You spent it at the pub," Juliet lies.
One night, in the third month, they go to bed and, for the first time, don't make love. Not once. Juliet quietly cries herself to sleep. It's over, she thinks. My Romeo is no Romeo.
The next day, he buys her a horse they really don't need.
"I love you," she says. "I really, really love you."
Year Two: A transition year. Juliet is pregnant. Romeo is often away on business. She begins to eat
"You having triplets or something?" Romeo snaps after returning from a long journey.
"Are you saying I'm big?" Juliet cries.
"Of course not," Romeo answers.
"You want that last piece of pie?" asks Juliet, a smidgen of whipped cream on her pretty chin.
Year Three: Juliet has triplets. Romeo is stuck in a middle-management job. He quits the jousting team and lets himself go a little. He is losing the hair on his head but growing it like sod on his ears, neck and back.
"Waaaaa!" wail the babies.
"Waaaaa!" wails Juliet.
"What's wrong now?" Romeo asks.
"This house, it's far too small for all of us," Juliet complains.
The next day, Romeo takes a second job, writing sonnets. Twelve for a dime.
Year 10: To make ends meet, Romeo is now working three jobs. Juliet is running a small, unlicensed day-care center out of the back of their new house. They owe $5,000 to her parents, to whom they haven't spoken for more than a decade. One night, Juliet announces she might be pregnant again.
"How many kids do we have now?" Romeo asks.
"Five," answers Juliet. "No, six
"Oh lord
"Or is it seven?" Juliet wonders.
On weekends, just for kicks, Romeo lays down a few bucks on the local sports teams. He doesn't tell Juliet.
