Romeo for Real

by Markus Harwood-Jones

  The guidance counsellor, Lawrence, was the kind of teacher who let you call him by his first name. He sported a silver cross hanging by a ring from his ear and told stories about the ska band he had ‘back in the day.’ There’d even been rumours that he was gay, since he was always referring to his ‘partner’ Alex. Of course, that rumour stopped when Lawrence announced Alex was pregnant. Though Lawrence could still be bi or something, Rome mused, trying to think like Julian, or Alex could be transgender. But the best thing about Lawrence, by far, was that you could really trust him — once that door was closed, that was it.

  The door was unlocked, but Lawrence wasn’t inside. Rome settled into one of the comfy beige chairs and looked around at the room. The space was filled with photos of graduates, letters of thanks, and books like Learning to Learn, Chicken Stew for the Musical Soul, and 50 Ways to Transform that Anger into Productivity. Rome chuckled a little at the cheesy titles, then turned to the wall of pamphlets behind the desk. They advertised help for what seemed like any problem, from Chlamydia is Not a Flower, to Ask Before Opening: Learning Good Consent. Rome even noticed a pamphlet that looked just like the one Lyla had given him!

  “Well, hey there!” Lawrence appeared in the doorway. He wore a big smile, and took a long sip from his massive travel mug before taking a seat behind the desk.

  “Hey, Lawrence. I need some advice. And, like, somewhere just to chill. That cool?” Rome asked, chewing at his lip. The worries were starting to creep back into his head.

  “Cool as a cucumber,” Lawrence answered in a sing-song voice. “What’s on your mind, bud?” he asked, leaning in. Already he had that look that he got when getting ready for some top-notch listening.

  Rome glanced away. Suddenly, he felt not quite up to eye contact. “Um . . . I guess I — It’s just that . . .” Rome shut his eyes. “I think I’m falling in love!”

  It wasn’t exactly what he was planning to say, but there it was. Rome cautiously opened one eye, trying to read Lawrence’s reaction.

  “Okay.” Lawrence nodded and took another long sip. “You seem upset for someone in love. Are you and Rosie having problems?”

  Rome laughed. Of course! Everyone at school still thought he and Rosie were an item. “No, no, she’s with someone else now. Someone she met in university.” Rome waved his hand in the air, as if to fan the very thought of that away. Before Lawrence could ask, Rome added, “I met someone new, too.”

  Lawrence nodded sagely. “Mhm. Well, tell me about this new girl.”

  Thinking of Julian, Rome felt himself blush. “Well, we’re really different. But it’s cool. Like, that’s what makes it work? We have so much to talk about! And even though we just met I can’t stop thinking about him —” Rome froze, realizing he’d just let it slip. He looked up, but Lawrence didn’t seem to have noticed. Rome said it again. “Yeah, he’s like, the most amazing person I’ve ever met.”

  “Well,” Lawrence chuckled, “it sounds like you’re over Rosie!”

  Rome shrugged. Now that it was out there, he couldn’t think of anything else to say. He waited for a reaction, for something to change. But things didn’t feel different. He had told someone about Julian, and the world hadn’t ended. He was still sitting there in the same office, looking at the same man he’d known for years. It all felt so normal! And, to his surprise, that kind of bothered him. At least when he’d told Rose and Lyla, they had been excited. But Lawrence simply sat there.

  Rome crossed his arms. Shouldn’t he be surprised? Did he just not care? Or, maybe he didn’t hear Rome right. Rome’s eyes grew wide as an even more disturbing thought came to him. Oh God, has he been able to tell all along?

  Rome’s palms were getting sweaty again. He began to fiddle with his ring. Finally, he tried to say it, clear as day. “I think, maybe I’m, uh, gay?”

  Lawrence simply nodded, so Rome decided to keep going. “I told Rosie — um, Rose, I mean. She’s actually a lesbian now, or I guess she always was? Anyway, she just moved in with this chick, Lyla, who’s pretty cool too.” Lawrence’s expression didn’t change. There was still just that placid smile. “And this guy, Julian . . .” Rome trailed off. He felt his face turn warm again. “He’s, um, really nice . . .”

  Once Rome started describing Julian, he found he couldn’t stop. Finally, once Rome had run out of words completely, Lawrence spoke up. “That’s really rad, Rome!”

  Rome just shrugged. “I mean, I guess.”

  Lawrence took another long sip before announcing, “You know, I think I have just the pamphlet for this!” He put down the mug and started rummaging through his supplies.

  “Uh, I don’t really need that,” Rome replied. “But, I was sorta hoping you could help me out with something else. I kind of want to tell the guys about this, um, new thing. Maybe? I mean, I don’t know. I don’t know how to not say something. But how do I even . . . ?”

  Lawrence looked up, eyes sparkling. “Would you like me to page them into the office? We could all have a nice chat. I think I have some tea.” He moved to another section of his desk, pulling out various boxes of green, black, and herbal teas.

  “Er — I, don’t, uh . . .” Rome tried to find his words. Having Ben and Marty paged so he could tell them he was gay was the most awkward thing he could imagine.

  Lawrence sat back up. “All right.” He went to his rack of books and pulled something out. “You could let them read this!” He passed over a small booklet titled, Man Up for your Man Friends who like Men: The Straight but Not Narrow Project.

  Rome squirmed a little. The uneasy feeling was in his stomach again. With a polite thanks to Lawrence, Rome took the reading material. He said a quick goodbye before he went off, hoping to grab a snack before his next class.

  12

  Trouble

  As the teacher droned on in afternoon English, Rome zoned out. His thoughts flitted from his feelings for Julian, to worries over what his friends were going to say, to concerns over his parents. And all those damn pamphlets! Telling Lawrence had just made things feel more confusing, and the pressure was building up inside him again. Nervously, Rome texted Marty and Ben under the desk, suggesting they meet up after school. They agreed, of course, with Marty suggesting they go to his place. His parents were away for work again, off to Berlin this time for a conference or something.

  By the end of the day, Rome was dragging his feet as he headed toward the school doors. Maybe he shouldn’t say anything. Or maybe he should tell them right away? Oh God, there they are, he thought.

  Ben and Marty were smoking at the edge of the parking lot. Just as Rome was about to open the door and call out to them, something else grabbed their attention. Rome saw a massive truck pull up. Once he stepped outside, he could hear Ben shouting at the two beefy guys coming out of the vehicle.

  “Hey, homos!” Ben threw his smoke to the ground, sending sparks flying into a patch of weeds. “You wanna start something?” he asked with a laugh. “Or you get lost looking for a place to suck cock?”

  Rome recognized the bigger of the two guys as the one who’d kicked him out of Rose and Lyla’s party. This is gonna be trouble, thought Rome, heading toward the commotion. He saw Ben already getting riled up, while Marty still hung back.

  Heat seemed to rise off the asphalt of the parking lot as tensions grew. Ben and the taller of the two bald men approached each other, while Ben hurled out insults. The big, buff guy flexed a little, pushing against his shirt, forcing Ben to notice their size difference. As he got closer, Rome could see Marty was sweating heavily and nervously watching the school doors. Marty glanced toward Rome, as if asking him to do something. Rome looked back, unsure if he wanted to see a teacher peeking out or not.

  Before Rome could even reach the action, the other guy, who seemed to be the bigger one’s boyfriend, came up and patted his partner on the back. Thankfully, the gesture seemed to be enough. The pair turned to leav
e. Rome let out a short sigh of relief. That could have been worse.

  As they made their way back to the truck, Marty seemed to find his nerve. “Yeah, you better run!” Marty shouted, puffing up his chest. He only stuttered a little as he called after the couple. “F-Faggots!”

  Rome froze. The guys were almost inside their truck. He sent out a silent prayer that they would just leave. Just go home. Please.

  The bigger of the pair looked over his shoulder at Marty, who now seemed a lot less sure of himself. The man slowly walked right up to Marty, looking him up and down, his face unreadable. Finally, he cocked an eyebrow and loudly asked, “Who you kidding, Mary?” Marty’s jaw dropped as the stranger added, “You’re not fooling anyone.”

  A deep red ran across Marty’s cheeks. That’s when he let the first punch fly.

  Marty’s fist connected with the man’s jaw at an odd angle, making Marty shout in surprise. Rome began to run toward the group, calling to Marty, “Dude, don’t!”

  The other buff guy ran back, coming to the aid of his partner. Ben got in the way, taking a shot at the first guy’s side. The stranger was tough, but he didn’t expect Ben’s hit. He reeled back.

  As Rome rushed over, the bigger guy pushed him back and knocked him to the ground. Then he swung back at Marty, hitting him right in the teeth. His fist collided with Marty’s braces. Both of them yowled as the buff guy’s hand was cut by the metal in Marty’s mouth. Blood burst from the inside of Marty’s lip.

  Something clicked inside Rome. No longer thinking, he stood and ran forward. He was furious, frustrated, tired of this whole thing. With a full-on body slam, Rome tackled the taller stranger to the ground. They were only down for a moment before he was pulled off by the second guy, who threw Rome to the side like a heavy gym bag.

  Then Ben pulled out his phone. “You goddamn animals!” he screamed. “One more move and I’m calling the cops!”

  The two men shared a look. They leaped into the truck and took off, speeding into the street. Ben shouted swears and empty threats after them. Rome got up and tried to help Marty with his busted-up lip.

  Lawrence’s voice rang out from across the parking lot. In seconds, he was at the side of the three young men. He was followed by the steady footsteps of the vice principal, Mrs. Duke.

  Marty was taken to the hospital to get checked out. Rome and Ben were escorted inside and taken to the main office.

  “I hope they call the cops on those fudge-packers,” Ben growled. His hands were still balled into fists. “We should get a damn medal, keeping this place safe from pervos like that. I bet we could sue those guys! Oh, just wait until my step-dad hears about this!”

  While Ben went on, Rome just sighed. He looked down at his hands, wiping off the bits of rock stuck in his palm. That certainly hadn’t gone the way he wanted.

  “Romeo Montague,” the secretary called out, “your parents should be here in a few minutes.”

  “Well, crap,” Rome said under his breath.

  13

  Breaking Point

  “Marty?! In the teeth?!” Rome’s father bellowed. His face was turning red. “You got the guy back, right?!”

  Rome’s mother stayed silent. She frowned as she stared at the vice principal’s nameplate on the dark wooden desk.

  Mrs. Duke looked at the whole Montague family as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “Mr. and Mrs. Montague, I hope you realize how seriously we need to take this incident.” Her tone was level and icy. “Your son took part in a violent assault while he was on school property. This is grounds for automatic suspension, if not expulsion.”

  Rome felt numb. The details of what happened were all blurring together. Did he really do that? Was that really him? It felt like he’d been in Mrs. Duke’s office for ages, watching his parents and the vice principal going back and forth. Glancing up at the clock, Rome sighed. It had only been about five minutes.

  Finally, his mother spoke. “How did all of this start, Romeo? Was this a mean kid from school? A bully? Was he from some other sports team?” She extended a hand to place it on Rome’s shoulder. His father pushed the hand away. “Don’t smother the boy,” he growled.

  To Rome it all felt unreal. He wondered if he could have made a different decision. Maybe get involved sooner, or try to talk Ben and Marty down. It felt frustratingly simple, like he should be able to just retrace his steps and make it better. “We . . .” Words came to Rome, but slowly, as if they were floating up from somewhere very far away. Or perhaps he was floating. Yes, that was it, he felt like he was floating above himself, watching this all happen. That made it a little easier.

  “We knew the guy. I mean, sort of. We’d seen him around.” Rome ran his fingers in circles around the top of his class ring. “He pulled up, started saying stuff to Ben, I didn’t really hear. And he, uh, he was with —” As Rome stumbled over his words, his father groaned in frustration. “We saw him with some other guy. Like, a boyfriend, or whatever.” He didn’t want to rat on his friends, or dig himself any deeper. At that point, he just went silent.

  Rome’s father’s eyes grew wide. “Marty got beat up by a couple of gays?!” Rome couldn’t tell if his father was upset or amused.

  “I mean, he didn’t get . . . beat. Just punched,” Rome tried to explain.

  His father was beet red at this point. His mother was looking away. Mrs. Duke turned up her nose, and Lawrence gave Rome a pitying look that made him feel even worse. I’m gonna get kicked out of school for being a gay gay-basher, Rome thought. “Jesus H. Christ,” he muttered.

  “Well, at least you sent those guys running,” his father began. Mrs. Duke coughed and looked at him with disapproval. “I mean, uh, you’re in big trouble, young man. This is obviously unacceptable behaviour.”

  Rome’s stomach turned. He just kept his eyes down, studying his scar, trying to avoid his father’s gaze.

  Rome’s mother chimed in. “Mrs. Duke, I’m sure you can agree this is hardly grounds for expulsion. Especially considering graduation is just a few weeks away.” She was getting straight to the root of the problem, at least as she saw it — the risk of Rome failing to graduate. Rome wondered if she had any concern that her son might be a violent homophobe.

  “Mrs. Montague,” the vice principal replied, “Manitoba school divisions have a zero-tolerance policy regarding violence.” Glaring at Rome, she went on. “In accordance with that policy, your son will be on a twenty-four-hour suspension. During this time, I will consult with the parents of the other students involved, the principal, and the superintendent. If we find that your son has had past incidents like this one, any vandalism or drug use, he is facing expulsion.”

  Rome’s father just nodded. He was clearly growing tired of the conversation. Rome’s mother went quiet, too, seemingly lost in thought. Mrs. Duke wasn’t going to budge, that much was clear. Thankfully, the family was dismissed when Ben’s step-father arrived and it became his turn to undergo the third-degree.

  Heading to the door a step behind his parents, Rome felt a hand on his shoulder. Mrs. Duke leaned in, whispering to him directly. “Let me be clear. If I have any say in the matter, I will ensure you and your two friends do not graduate.” Rome felt himself shaking as he followed his parents out the door.

  Mrs. Duke called out to Mr. and Mrs. Montague, “Thank you for coming in on such short notice. I’ll be in touch.”

  “God,” Rome muttered to himself as he walked out of the school. He wondered if he’d ever even be let back inside.

  ***

  Over dinner, Rome’s part in the fight was the topic of endless discussion, mostly pronouncements spouted by his father. Pulling out his usual after-dinner drink early, Rome’s father poured a glass of scotch. In turn, his mother pulled the cork out of a new bottle of wine, though in a far less festive mood. Both clearly felt the situation freed them from the need for the usual subtleties. Ro
me realized he was itching for a drink, too.

  “They were probably high, stoned out of their gourd,” said Rome’s father. “Couple of pansies with nothing better to do than pick a fight with some high-school kids! Get a job! Am I right?” Rome’s father mixed stereotypes like he was making a cocktail.

  While his father got mouthier as he drank, Rome’s mother turned sullen. She just quietly watched her son. Her blank expression was far more hurtful to Rome than any words his father could hurl.

  Rome felt himself turning red and finally snapped, “Can you not? I just . . . Can I just be excused? Please?”

  “You got a concussion or something?” His father grinned. “Come on, now, your first real fight! Of course, when they ask at school, make sure you tell them you’ve learned your lesson. You can say we beat you good for it!” As his father laughed, bits of food and spit flew through his teeth.

  Rome’s mother took a long sip of wine. “Those men were clearly troubled,” she said, matter-of-factly. “You know, sometimes people need a wake-up call. Maybe God was working through you and your friends, helping put them on the right path.” She reached out to tap his hand. “We will pray for them.”

  Rome pulled back and stood up from his seat. “Stop it!” he shouted.

  “Calm down,” his father replied at equal volume. “We’re on your side!”

  Rome shot him an angry look. Squeezing his fists, he said through clenched teeth, “No! You aren’t! I wish it hadn’t happened. I wish I’d never even —”

  “You don’t mean that,” his mother interrupted. “Why, who knows what could have happened, they could have killed Marty. Or worse, ra —”

  “Don’t say it!” Rome couldn’t let her finish the thought. “My God, don’t even!”

  Standing as well, his mother finally had a reaction. “We do not use the Lord’s name in vain in this household.”