Storyline
Chapter 2: Love Story

"So who goes first?" Rose asked as she prepared a cup of tea from the tray she had brought into the library "Mine's rubbish. 'M'not sure if I'd rather read it now and get it over with, or put it off as long as possible." She took a sip from her cup, then set it down as she leaned back into the settee.

"I wouldn't worry," said the Doctor, who was sitting next to her. "It's likely fine. But we're pretentious, the lot of us, thinking we can improve upon Shakespeare." He stared at the paper in his hand, and frowned.

"It's not about improving Shakespeare," Jack said from the easy chair to their left. "It's about improving Romeo and Juliet's outcome. And since it was my idea, I'll go first." Jack picked up a rectangular tablet-like device that was sitting at his side and touched the screen to turn it on. Then he cleared his throat and began.

Romeo watches as the beautiful Juliet heads upstairs at the party's end. He thinks about how gorgeous she looks and wants another look. Rosaline wouldn't even let him kiss her, but he had just kissed Juliet twice in the house that belonged to his family's enemy. That was an incredible turn-on. He hears his cousin and his friend calling him, but those two losers were leaving alone, and he'd soon be seeing as much of Juliet as he possibly could.

There was the sound of a scoff from Jack's right, and Jack looked up in time to see the Doctor roll his eyes.

"What?" Jack challenged.

"Romeo sounds a bit anachronistic," the Doctor answered. "Depending on what expert you talk to, the play takes place either in the fourteenth or sixteenth century."

"And modernizing Shakespeare has been done for millennia," said Jack. "Now if you don't mind…" Jack turned back to his device and continued.

Romeo jumps the orchard wall as if it wasn't even there and locates the only widow that is still lit. From his hiding place in the shrubbery, he watches Juliet exit her room and stand on the balcony. She begins to speak. There is no one there, so it's strange and a bit disconcerting, but he continues to listen because Juliet is incredibly hot and it sounds like she's talking about him. After a few more angsty sentences, it is clear that Juliet is hot for him too.

"Hey babe," he calls up. "You can call me whatever you want as long as we can continue where we left off!"

"How'd you get in here and how did you find my room?" Juliet asks him in startled astonishment.

"I was fueled by my desire for you," he says. He looks around. "Do you have another way out of your room? Down the trellis even? I know of a perfect place we can go to be alone and…"

"That's rather sudden, isn't it?" Juliet asks. "Give me time to think. I mean I love you too, but planning a wedding on such short notice won't be easy and…"

"Woah!" Romeo says taking a step back. "Who said anything about love? And marriage? Are you crazy? I'm seventeen and in my prime. Only a fool would marry this young."

"I'm thirteen," says Juliet.

"Thirteen?" he gasps. He looks up at Juliet's shapely figure in disbelief. He never would have guessed. "Yeah, not happening," says Romeo.

"But they want me to marry Paris and he's over twenty!" says Juliet.

"Not my problem," Romeo says as he begins to walk away. But then he feels sorry for the girl. He turns around and looks back up at her crestfallen face. "Tell you what," he says. "I'm friends with the friar and he is sick of our feuding families and our controlling parents. I'll take you to him first thing in the morning. He can talk to your parents and get them to reconsider. And if they won't, he can find you a family to look after you until you are of a better age to marry."

"Oh thank you dear Romeo," Juliet gasps with joy. "You are honorable indeed!"

At Juliet's words Romeo feels a twinge of guilt. His thoughts of Juliet all night had been less than what she deemed honorable. "Don't mention it," he says. And he means it. He has a reputation to uphold, and he doesn't need it ruined with tales of chivalry. "I'll be here at dawn to take you to the friar."

He bows to the maiden whose maidenhood will remain intact for sometime longer and leaps like a tiger onto a raised ledge then over the orchard wall. If he is lucky, he will be able to catch up with his comrades who have likely found a good bottle of wine and some girls with a more liberal definition of respectability.

THE END

When Jack finished his story, Rose was laughing and shaking her head in amusement. The Doctor, on the other hand, was rolling his eyes upward with such exaggerated movements that his irises almost completely disappeared behind his eyelids.

"How is that romantic?" asked the Time Lord.

Jack propped his feet on the coffee table in front of him, crossing his ankles as he did. "I didn't say it had to be romantic," he told the Doctor. "All I said is that it needed to be a happier ending. You can't deny that Romeo is a lot happier not getting mixed up with Juliet in the first place."

"Was she really thirteen?" Rose asked the Doctor, "or is that something Jack added?"

"Really thirteen," he said. "Mentioned right in the lines of the play." At Rose's look of shock the Doctor added, "Things were different then."

"They couldn't have been that different," Rose said. "I couldn't imagine deciding to marry at that age. At thirteen I hadn't even settled on what flavor ice cream I liked best!"

"Still haven't," said the Doctor with a chuckle. "It's why you always get a cone with a double scoop or two different cartons of Ben and Jerry's."

"I've got it narrowed down to two anyhow!" she said back. Then she turned to Jack. "How did Juliet get a happy ending? All you did is postpone her arranged marriage."

Jack shrugged. "I ran out of time. I imagine she eventually found someone else of her own choosing."

"Okay," said Rose with a nod of acceptance. "Doctor you go next!"

The Doctor unfolded his paper. It looked like it was written on parchment with a quill pen. "I vote for you already for style alone!" gushed Rose. The Doctor grinned and began his tale.

Romeo stood in front of Friar Laurence, his two hands holding Juliet's hands as if they were each delicate flowers, marveling how that action alone made him feel complete. He had always scoffed at the idea of love at first sight. He had dismissed it as the subject of of the minstrels, made to entertain and inspire, but not to be taken seriously. But that was before he met Juliet. One look at her in a room full of masked revelers had caused him to forget his lament over Rosaline. But it was not just her beauty that drew Romeo. There was something about her spirit that seemed destined to be joined with his. From that point on, the sun rose and set with Juliet. And as the sun began its descent marking the end of the day, so would this wedding mark the end of his life alone and the beginning of a life lived in tandem.

Romeo gazed at his bride, his hearts overflowing with love for her.

"Wait!" interrupted Jack. "Did you just say 'hearts'—with an 's'?"

"No," the Doctor answered.

"But you did, I heard you!" said Rose with a nod.

"Wrote 'heart.'" He said pointing to his paper with indignance.

"But you still said hearts," Jack said with a chuckle. "Freudian slip?

"Habit. Be like you trying to say 'He couldn't believe his eye' or 'It was music to his ear.""

"Right," said Jack, not sounding convinced. "What color hair does this Juliet have?"

"What does that matter?" asked the Doctor as irritation rose in his voice.

Jack smirked. "Just curious."

"Didn't mention haircolor," the Doctor said with a frown.

"Stop winding him up, Jack" Rose said. Then she turned to the Time Lord. "Finish your story Doctor. It's lovely so far."

The Doctor's face softened. He studied his parchment-like paper, found his stopping point and began again.

Romeo gazed at his bride, his heart overflowing with love for her. He marvelled that she could love him with same measure of love he had for her, and he worried that he would not be worthy of it. But his attempt would be valiant and unending. He would not be content to bask in her love and affection, he would give all he had to please her, even sacrificing his own life and happiness, if it proved necessary, to give her the life she needed and deserved.

The friar spoke of promises made and the recipe for an enduring marriage, and as he did, Romeo's thoughts turned back to the words the selfsame man uttered in warning earlier. Even at this hour, Romeo rejected the holy man's accusations that Juliet was just one in a long line of fickle infatuations. Romeo knew the difference. But his other words carried too much wisdom to reject. Though mature for her age, Juliet was still very young and the friar had warned Romeo not to enter to hastily into this lasting bond. Their future had not been discussed, and all he knew of Juliet's past was the house into which she was born.

And therein lied the trouble. Two hearts unified would not be enough to turn the tide of generations of hate. He could marry her, yes, but it would only stoke the fire already burning between their houses. And both would lose family and fortune as reward for their fortitude.

A tear escaped from Romeo's eye as he beheld his would-be bride. Indeed, she would be a bride in time, but not to him—not today. He could not rip her from her family and give her no hope of return.

He spoke these words to his love, and the tears that fell from her eyes stung him more than the ones that fell from his own. He knew her heart was breaking, and yet the blow that shattered it was dealt in love. Romeo would toil and struggle like Jacob for Rachel, proving his worth to her family. He would do it for seven years or seventy, never loving another. But should she find herself a lover more worthy in that time, he would relinquish all ties to her.

Romeo walked from the chapel as if he were part of a funeral procession. In time the pain would subside. And he prayed that in time he and Juliet would be together. But at least today he had protected that which he loved the most.

When the Doctor set down his story, Rose was sniffing and a few tears were glistening on her cheek.

The Doctor looked at her in alarm and confusion. "What happened?" He asked her, tentatively putting a hand on her shoulder. "Why're you cryin'?"

Rose sniffed and smiled " 'Cos of you, you daft alien," she said. "I didn't know you could talk like that. It's so lovely. And you said you didn't believe in love at first sight!"

"Did not," protested the Doctor. "Just said I didn't think it was a good foundation for a relationship."

"Oh," Rose said, then she turned her head to look at the Doctor. "Why did you make it so sad?"

"It's not!" he protested. "It is just not an instant happy ending."

"And therefore sad," interjected Jack.

Rose nodded in agreement. "Very sad." She furrowed her brow. "Who are Jacob and Rachel?"

"Characters from the book of Genesis," the Doctor said. "Biblical and mythological allusions were common in Shakespeare's works. Jacob toiled seven years for Rachel's father in order to have Rachel's hand in marriage. But his father-in-law switched brides with Jacob and he married the older sister instead. So he had to work seven more years to get Rachel as well."

"So you're comparing Romeo to a man with two wives?" Jack asked with a chuckle. "Now there's a twist."

"That wasn't my point!" said the Doctor. "It was that Romeo would have done anything for Juliet."

"It's still depressing," Jack said. "Rose, please tell me that yours is more upbeat."

Rose nodded emphatically. "It is." She unfolded the white sheet of paper that she had pulled from the back pocket of her jeans and stared at the printed words. She hesitated for a moment then began to read.

For the first sixteen years of Juliet's life, nothing happened. Nothing at all. Not ever.

Rose paused and lowered her paper. "I didn't know she was thirteen when I wrote this," she said. The story might not make as much sense now," she said in an apologetic tone.

"She can be sixteen in your version," the Doctor said. "Story's been adapted in many different ways. This is yours." He smiled at Rose and placed his hand on her forearm briefly for emphasis.

Rose's cheeks flushed slightly. "Okay," she stammered, then began again.

For the first sixteen years of Juliet's life, nothing happened. Nothing at all. Not ever. She spent most of it at her own home, obedient to her parents who cared more about their place in society and their stupid feud than their own daughter— even trying to force her to marry someone she didn't love.

And then she met Romeo, a young man who was considered her enemy because of the family he belonged to. They loved each other and got married in secret. She thought the joy she felt would never end. But then came the conflict between Mercutio and Tybalt. And that's when her fairy tale ended, on the day that Mercutio and Tybalt died.

Romeo was banished from the city and the date of Juliet's arranged marriage to Paris was pushed up. Juliet cried all night. She mourned for her cousin Tybalt, but she could not blame Romeo. Tybalt had come seeking him and found Mercutio instead. Romeo had tried to stop the fight, but it got worse.

It wouldn't have mattered. Even if he had prevented it for a day, Tybalt would have returned. Mercutio was already dead and the feud would just continue. It was not Romeo's war, but he was caught in the middle. She forgave him. She understood. But understanding didn't help. She was separated from her new husband and being forced to accept another.

Juliet had been submissive long enough. She tried to reason with her parents, but it failed. She had no choice. Everyone leaves home in the end, and it was her time. She gathered some money and provisions, then using the same rope ladder Romeo had used to come to her room on their wedding night, she climbed out of her room after midnight and left her home.

She went to the friar to ask where Romeo was staying. He told her the way. Then he gave her food for her journey and blessed her. Juliet left the friar with letters to deliver to both the houses of Montague and Capulet explaining what their conflict had caused and begging them to reconcile. It also lead the families to believe they had found passage across the sea and planned to settle in France.

Juliet found her Romeo later that afternoon. They traded their fine clothes for common ones and changed their names, then they set out on their journey. They found work as servants in a town further away and stayed there several months until they were certain the search for them had ended. Then they took the money they had saved and hidden away and travelled to Greece.

They settled in Crete and raised a family. They never had the position and wealth of their parents, but they lived a life with only minor struggles, and whatever challenges came their way, they faced them together, hand in hand.

Rose set down her paper. "Well that's it," she said with a blush. "Nothing special, but happier at least.

"Great job, Rose," said Jack.

At the same time, the Doctor said, "Very nice."

"So do we vote now or something?" Asked Rose, her eyes darted to the box of sweets sitting on a table a few paces away. Next to it was the bouquet of roses, now in a crystal vase.

"Yes," said Jack sitting up and assuming his role of competition host. "Each of us has to tell who we've chosen and why. So if you pick yourself, you better have a good argument."

"Who goes first?" asked the Doctor.

Jack took three coins from his pocket that had come from the planet Valentine. All three were exactly the same size— slightly bigger in circumference than his thumb— but two were a golden hue while one was a metallic pink. He dropped them in his empty tea cup. "Close your eyes and pick one coin," said Jack. "Whoever chooses the pink one goes first."

It was Rose that chose pink. "This isn't easy," she said. "They were both brilliant. Jack's was funny but not all that romantic. The Doctor's was romantic but still seemed like a tragedy. I choose both."

"You have to play by the rules," said Jack. "You can only choose one."

Rose looked back and forth between the Doctor and Jack. "Fine. I choose the Doctor—er—the Doctor's story. His at least gives the pair the chance to be together."

The Doctor beamed, raised his eyebrows at Jack, and crossed his arms in triumph.

"I'm next," said Jack. "And as great as mine was, Rose's was the happiest and most romantic. I choose her story."

Rose's cheeks turned pink.

"So do I," the Doctor said. "Very clever how they started a new life."

Now Rose's cheeks were bright red. "Thanks," she said meekly.

Jack brought over the enormous box of chocolates and handed it to Rose. "You earned it," he said. "Better pace yourself, though."

Rose set the box on her lap and broke the foil seal that held the lid to the base. Then she carefully lifted the heart-shaped lid. Her mouth dropped open in amazement. "There have to be two hundred chocolates in here!" she marvelled. She stared at the assortment of sweets for several seconds, then she replaced the lid and stood up.

"New plan," she said. "We all earned these...twice. I say we go to the media room, watch a Nora Ephron rom-com and share these. Anyone with me?"

Both men nodded and stood up.

"One problem," Jack said as he followed Rose and the Doctor out of the library. "How are we going to decide who choses the film?"

Author's Notes: It took a bit more than one sitting to write the above, but I did try to do each character's story that way. It was fun, like fanfiction within fanfiction! And I want to thank my husband for this wonderful idea, which was in part inspired by the YouTube series "How it Should Have Ended." It pokes fun of plot holes and comes up with humorous endings for many films and television shows. There is one about Doomsday, but it still stings a bit...

The chapter title is from Taylor Swift's song "Love Story" which is about a romance that parallels Romeo and Juliet except that they get a happier ending.

I have enjoyed this last year on and the friends I have made as well. If you've never read it, you can check out The Game of Love Hearts to see where all my Who fics began. Thanks for all the follows, favorites and reviews. I appreciated them more than words can express. And if I stop following every rabbit trail that comes my way I may eventually get back to my novel lengths!

Linda Who: Yes I am keeping my word to reference her in every longer story. And it means a lot to hear that people think I have the voices down. It was particularly difficult this second chapter in which they had to each write in a way that would fit them too.