Ro (A Cyberpunk Retelling of Romeo and Juliet)

32

JULES CAPULET

"Ah, look who's joining us in the land of the living."

I try and open my mouth, questions rising to my lips. But my tongue can hardly move. My whole mouth tastes of dust.

"Calm, sweetie." Nutrix points to the medic-bot with the cameras for eyes, the bodyguards at the door, and the med-alert bracelet that bites into my wrist. I watch my blood cycle around the bracelet, the micro-needles at the inside of the cuff so tiny that I can't feel them. But I know they're there. The med-alert has a holo-screen that displays my vitals. An automatic drip system runs through the needles, filtering toxins from my blood and replacing it with doses of mysterious substances that the medic-bot replaces every so often.

Nutrix sits at the edge of my bed. My room never felt like home. It was often just a place to sleep, and to fall into once-meaningless dreams. But now, it feels even more foreign to me. A place for sickness. For utter, unnatural silence. My fashion-designer-friend-turned-nurse takes his role in stride, lifting my medic-bracelet and checking the vitals with a sniff.

"Hm," he smirks, lips quirking upwards in the corners. "Who would've thought that I'd see the Jules Capulet donning medic-chic?"

"You..." I cough, lungs aching from the electrical shock I'd received earlier, and Nutrix runs to fetch a glass of water. I sip at it gratefully. "You must hate me for hiding so much from you."

His smirk only widens, pink-dyed pupils lit up from within. Eye-Lens couldn't hope to manufacture that sparkle. "You're young. Not yet jaded like my thirty-something years. It's only natural you'd rebel and keep secrets from everybody." He exhales, looking into my eyes, fluffing my pillows. "Even from yourself."

He bites his lower lip, gnawing on the gloss. "What?" I croak. "Say it."

His fingers through hair, tugging the frosted tips back from his scalp. "I was there when you learned that you were Jules." He takes me in as I lie there, being injected with gods-know-what by a robot with a bracelet. I can't escape, not with those bodyguards. "I was there when you came up with the idea of a fashion line to show New Verona who Jules really was."

I smile at him, giving his hand a squeeze. "You were always my favorite fashion designer." I tease, hoping to ease the tension.

"Now, with this Ro Montague business..." He just doesn't let go. I should've expected it of him. "I'm here for you now, Jules."

"I know."

"No," he looks purposefully into my eyes, "I'm here for you now."

He leans closer to feign kissing my cheek, but instead, he whispers in my ear. "They're keeping Ro Montague in solitary in an empty casino vault." A breath. I watch my vitals, eyes flitting nervously to the bot and to the guards at my room's door. "Now that they know you're connected, they aren't taking chances. Ro's safe, until they find a way to get the infinity implant out of your system." He taps the bracelet. I inhale sharply, praying that my heartbeat doesn't look suspicious. "A scandal like this could bring the whole city to riots. The only way they can keep your link from sharing thoughts or dreaming is if you're in a drug-induced sleep. Or otherwise heavily sedated."

Styx, my parents have gone insane.

"They want you to sign the merger with Jack Paris to leave it all behind us..."

Or? I mouth the question, too scared to speak aloud.

"Sleep." He nods, pretending to smile and laugh at an inside joke. I smile back, my face hurting from it. "And don't expect to wake up in this century."

***

Hey, it's Ro Montague here. Don't forget to vote and comment... or else.

Your daily wisdom for the day?

I never thought sleep could be a bad thing. Turns out, everything is in excess. Damn.