1993 — Mystic Falls, Virginia

   It was Cher's idea. It was how she ended standing in between Cher and Rachelle Watson, with a script in her hands and a bored expression. She didn't know why she agreed to go through with it, but it was because her best friend had decided to pull her along with it. Forcefully. Cher had grabbed her by her arm and dragged her straight from her house to the car. She couldn't say no, because she was afraid of saying no to her best friend.

   "You're gonna love it," Cher said with a happy grin. "I'm positive!"

   "Sure," Florence nodding. She bit her lips together and raised her brows and she glanced away, sure that she wouldn't love it. 

   "Come on, Florence!" Cher groaned, smacking her in the arm. "You're a good actress; you might get the part of Lady Capulet, my mother." 

   It was something that happened every summer in Mystic Falls—Shakespeare In The Park, although it was in the school auditorium and not in the park. Every summer, Mr. Marlowe, would put on a Shakespeare play where everyone in the town could be a part of. Everyone in town loved it, because afterwards there would be this grand after party where music and food would be given. But, the younger part of the cast, crew, and viewers, which meant the teenagers, would have another party with booze and no parent supervision. 

   "I think Miss Burby already got that part," Florence said as she glanced at the plump lady standing in the corner of the stage.

   "Then, maybe you can be Rosaline," Cher said with a shrug of her shoulders.

   "How about the narrator?" she questioned, giving her friend a close-lipped smile. She put a straight face and raised a fist to the air. "From forth the fatal loins of these two foes, a pair of star-crossed lovers take their life. Whose misadventures piteous overthrows do with their death bury their parents' strife."

   Cher rolled her eyes. "You're so dramatic, I wonder why you never get the starring role," she said as she crossed her arms. "Really, Florence."

   "Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?" Florence continued, with sarcastic hard eyes and a deep voice.

   Once again, Cher rolled her eyes. "Seriously, how the hell aren't you part of the drama club?"

   "Because I spend my time swimming," Florence answered with a hard smile. "I have no time to become the next Sharon Stone."

   "Speaking about Sharon Stone," Cher began. "I'm taking out my inner Catherine Tramell."

   "She's the serial killer of Basic Instinct," Florence noted, making a face.

   "Classic femme fatale and the new psycho killer," Cher said with a knowing smile. "Perfect."

   "Not if you're going for Juliet," Florence said. "Cher, Juliet is innocent and naive, not a femme fatale. If Mr. Marlowe was doing Antony and Cleopatra again, then maybe you could bring out your inner Catherine Tramell."

   Cher rolled her eyes and stared at her best friend. "Seriously, how the hell aren't you in the drama club?"

   "Swimming," Florence reminded her. 

   "Alright! Alright!" Mr. Marlowe clapped his hands and stood in the centre of the stage, deep brown eyes wondering all around. "We've got everyone cast except our two protagonists. I want to see the chemistry between our Romeo's and Juliet's, so I will put all of you into groups. Miss Watson, you will be paired with Mr. Day. Miss Gaines, you and Mr. Salvatore will go together. Miss Gilbert, you and Mr. Fell. Now, you will have three minutes to practice a scene." He clapped his hands once again and marched down the stairs to his desk.

   "I get Stefan," Cher said with a flirtatious chuckle. "We're bound to get the parts."

   "Good luck," Florence said as she walked away. Her eyes landed on Stefan's, who was looking at her with a small smile. She raised her hand and gave him a small wave before taking a stand in front of Charles Fell. It seemed that he was always there, wherever she was. She gave him a polite smile. "So, which part?"

   "I know you're doing this because Cher brought you here," he chuckled, crossing his arms. "I mean, you're dramatic but you don't like showing it."

   "Why is everybody calling me dramatic?" she asked, spreading her hands in front of her. "I'm not dramatic!"

   "Sometimes you are," he said with a nod. "I'm here like you, too. Harrison made me come because he didn't want to be alone, and because he wanted to flirt with Cher."

   "But, he ended up with Rachelle Watson," she pointed out, glancing at the pair. They were quietly bickering. Well, she was bickering. Harrison Day just stood there with an annoyed expression. "Well, maybe Mr. Marlowe will switch them out."

   "Doubt it," Charles shrugged. "Anyway, what part do you want to do? I was thinking their death scene."

   "Of course you would," Florence mumbled, rolling her eyes. "I'm not in the mood to cry, or die by stabbing myself, so how about we do another scene, like the one in which they first meet?"

   Charles nodded. "Okay, okay. Fine. Let's do that one. What scene is that again?"

   Florence passed through her script. "It's, er, scene five." She stared at the pages, trying to remember the lines. They were written to be spelled in the current English, not the one in which Shakespeare wrote it in. Either way, it was hard for Florence to remember the doth's and thee's and thou's. As she read the script again, she noticed that there weren't that many of those. 

   "Okay!" Mr. Marlowe called, clapping his hands loud enough for the room to quiet down. "I want Rachelle and Harrison to go first."

   Rachelle and Harrison went up to the stage and read first, the scene in which Juliet and Romeo marry in secret. It was short, but sweet. They read lovely and tender, as if secret well-kept. To Florence, they were fantastic. 

   Next it was she and Charles. They read the scene in which they met, which was awkward for both. The two of them kept stumbling over their words, and tried not to laugh as the other spoke. Florence stood with her hands together in front of her, a slight frown on her face as she read. She didn't feel the connection to Charles as Romeo.

   Cher and Stefan went afterwards, reading the same scene she and Charles read. But, it was different. Cher and Stefan had chemistry, she noticed. hey were soft and gentle, angelic, in a way. Cher did not act as Catherine Tramell, but as gentle as Molly Ringwald in Sixteen Candles. Florence watched with her hand on her chin and eyes full of wonder. There was a slight pain to her chest as she watched her best friend and Stefan act out one of the most romantic scenes in all of the play.

   Mr. Marlowe stood up when they finished, his fingers to his chin as he studied the couple on the stage. He leaned to his side to speak to the student that sat besides him, then nodded and straightened himself. "Okay, I'm going to switch groups. Miss Gaines, I want you to read with Mr. Day. Miss Watson, I want you to read with Mr. Fell. Mr. Salvatore, you and Miss Gilbert will be together. Three minutes!" 

   "Looks like Harrison got what he wanted," Charles chuckled, shaking his head. "See ya later, Florence."

   "Yeah, bye." She waved at him and watched as Stefan walked to her, his smile widening. When he stood in front of her, she felt her heart get all silly. She smiled. "Hi."

   "Hi," he said, glancing down before looking back at her. "So, are you enjoying yourself?"

   "Actually, I was dragged," she said as she shrugged her shoulders. "Cher didn't want to audition alone, so, ta-dah!" She spread her arms and wiggled her fingers, giving him a sarcastic grin.

   Stefan let out a small laugh and shook his head. "So, you don't want to audition?"

   "It's weird," she said as she glanced around and shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not one to act in plays. The last time I did it was freshman year, when Mr. Marlowe did The Crucible. I was Mercy Lewis."

   "So, you're not a newbie in acting?" he asked, a playful smile on his lips. "That up there wasn't you being nervous, you were being serious?"

   Florence's mouth opened in surprise, but there was a smile there. She hit him in the chest, but laughed and shook her head. "I wasn't nervous," she pointed out. "I was just... I was bored."

   "Really?"

   "Really," she nodded, still laughing. "I can't... Wow. I'm speechless, Stefan."

   He laughed. 

   Her heart acted all silly. 

   "So, what scene do you want to do?" he asked as he crossed his arms. "I was thinking the balcony scene."

   She raised a brow, but her lips betrayed her and spread into a smile. "The balcony scene," she repeated as she nodded. 

   "The balcony scene," he nodded. "It's the best one."

   "You do know that you have to climb that fake balcony, right?" She pointed at the wooden steps that led to the platform on top. The stage was almost done, but the crew still had to finish a few things. 

   "I know," Stefan nodded. "I'm sure I'm not gonna die for climbing a few stairs."

   Florence took in a deep breath and nodded. "Fine," she said. "We can do the balcony scene. I'm Juliet, right?"

   He laughed and shook his head. "To be honest, I was planning on auditioning for Juliet. But, you know, I got stuck with Romeo."

   "You'd make a beautiful Juliet," she laughed, shaking her head.

   "Mr. Salvatore!" Mr. Marlowe called. "Miss Gilbert! Since the two of you seem to have been finished, why don't you go first?"

   Stefan looked over at her and raised his brows, giving her a tight-lipped smile as if he couldn't believe what was happening. But, he nodded, and motioned his head for her to follow her. Slowly, she did. One foot in front of the other, careful, her heart thumping against her chest. She didn't know if she felt like that because she was nervous or because it was Stefan that stood in front of her. 

   Florence walked up the steps carefully, creaking underneath her sneakers. When she stood on the platform, she quickly laid her hands on the makeshift balcony afraid that she would fall. She took several deep breaths and looked over at the small audience whose eyes were on her. Cher was looking at her with a smile, a fist raised in the air and mouthing, "you can do this," to her. She nodded, took another deep breath, and glanced down at Stefan.

   He nodded, giving her a smile of reassurance.

   Just like all those times, her heart acted all silly. She was sure it was because of him, not because she was nervous.

   Stefan cleared his throat and pushed himself by the wooden steps. "She speaks," he began. "Oh, speak again, bright angel, for thou art as glorious to this night, being over my head as winged messenger of heaven. Unto the white-upturned wondering eyes of mortals that fall back to gaze on him when he bestrides the lazy-pacing clouds and sails upon the bosom of the air."

   His words were careful, gentle, as if he were made to speak Shakespearean and make it sound wonderful. He knew the lines by heart, as if he had read the play over and over again just for fun. It took her several second to realise that it was her turn to speak. She cleared her throat and looked down at her script. 

   "O-oh Romeo, Romeo!" she stuttered. "Wherefore art though Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I'll no longer be a Capulet." She was monotone, nervous, stumbling over every few words.

   They said their lines, Florence stumbling and Stefan saying it so perfectly. She was nervous, she felt her hands sweat as she held on to her script tightly. The edges of the paper were already crumpled. She was sure she was shaking, nervous, her heart right at her throat, and it wasn't because of Stefan. 

   It came to a point where she got comfortable, and she knew that it was because of Stefan's gentle words and the calmness it brought to her. She spoke carefully, enunciating every word and trying to act as best as she could. But, as she said her lines in front of him, there was an obvious smile to her lips. The smile didn't leave, but stayed on her lips as if it had been glued there. 

   Stefan came close to her, his hands on her cheek and lips inches away from hers. If she just moved closer, she knew that their lips would touch and they would finally kiss. But, she didn't, she pushed herself back and turned as if she were going to leave.

   "Oh, wilt thou leave me so unsatisfied?" Stefan asked. For a moment, she forgot that they were acting. 

   Slowly, Florence turned to him. "What satisfaction canst thou have tonight?"

   A smile began to spread around Stefan's lips.

   Her heart began to act all silly once again. She was positive it was because of him.

   "The exchange of thy love's faithful vow for mine," he softly said. 

   That glued-on smile began to appear around her lips again. "I gave thee mine before thou didst request it!" she loudly said, a small and surprising giggle escaping her lips. "And yet I would it were to give again." His hands were on her cheek again, lips inches away, and she wanted to pull him closer, to push herself closer.

   "Juliet!" someone called in a fake accent. 

   Florence opened her eyes and looked up into Stefan's eyes. They were green, like summer should be. "Three words, dear Stef-Romeo." She tried not to laugh as she realised the mistake, and hoped no one else heard it. But, by the smile in his lips and the snickers coming from the ones watching them, she knew they did. She let it pass through her head and nodded, deciding to continue. "And good night indeed. If that thy bent of love honourable, thy purpose marriage, send me word tomorrow. By one that I'll procure to come to thee, where and what time thou wilt perform the rite." Her voice got lower as she spoke, that small and special moment between her and Stefan with words written by the most known writer in all of the world. "And all my fortunes at thy foot I'll lay, and follow thee my lord throughout the world."

   "And scene!" Mr. Marlowe yelled, standing.

   Florence took a step back and laid her hands on her cheek, hoping for her cold hands to calm down her reddening cheeks. She quickly glanced at Stefan, who had the back of his hand over his mouth while the other rested on his waist. He had a soft smile behind his hand, his eyes staring at the floor. When he glanced over at her, she quickly looked back to Mr. Marlowe.

   "Miss Watson and Mr. Fell, you two are next!" he yelled, pointing at the other two that stood by the side of the stage.

   Florence walked down the steps and took a seat by Cher, taking in a deep breath. Cher, on the other hand, looked at excitedly. "Okay," she began. "What was that, huh?"

   "What was what?" Florence asked, raising a brow. 

   "That!" Cher enunciated, pointing at the stage with her chin. "What was that between you and Stefan?"

   "Acting," Florence answered with a shrug of her shoulders.

   "Oh, so just acting?" There was a teasing smile on her lips. She leaned back on her seat, crossed her arms and legs, and smirked at her best friend. "That wasn't just acting, Florence. That was sexual tension at its finest."

   Florence's cheeks reddened more than before and she shook her head. "No, no, no!" she said, swallowing back hard. "Um, no."

   Cher laughed. "Whatever you say," she shrugged her shoulders. "I wouldn't be surprised if you two end up getting the main role."

   "Would you be mad?" Florence slowly asked, turning to her friend with a small frown. They were best friends since children, and it would be absolutely stupid if their friendship was ruined by a silly summer play.

   "No," Cher said with a shrug of her shoulder. "Florence, this is just a summer play. It's just fun, not like it's going to change out lives. I just wanted to do it because there would be nothing to do over the summer." She smiled. "This is for fun, not for competition, okay?"

   Florence nodded. "You said it yourself, okay?" She let out a laugh. "This is for fun."

   "Fun," Cher nodded. "But, really, what's going on between you and Stefan? I could have cut that sexual tension with a knife!"

   "And we're not talking about this," Florence said with a tight-lipped smile.

   "Okay," Cher nodded again and crossed her arms. "We're not talking about now, but later."

   After Rachelle Watson and Charles went, Cher and Harrison were up next. As soon as Cher stood from her seat, Stefan took a seat. He gave her a smile, softly, and leaned closer to her. 

   "Why do they do auditions so late at night?" he asked.

   She shrugged her shoulders. "Because this is Mystic Falls," she said. "Nothing bad happens here." She turned her head and watcher her best friend act. 

   There was slight irritation in Cher's voice as she acted the balcony scene with Harrison, a slight hint of disgust. When he leaned in to kiss her, she immediately pushed him away and made a face. "Ew, no!" She turned to Mr. Marlowe. "I'm not kissing him!"

   "Mr. Day," Mr. Marlowe groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Do not kiss Miss Gaines without her consent."

   "But the script—"

   "Consent!" Mr. Marlowe emphasised. "I don't care what the script says, Mr. Day, you do not kiss without her consent." He stood and clapped his hands together, causing the room to quiet down. "We have made our decision on who will get the parts for this summer's rendition of Romeo and Juliet." He picked up his clipboard and cleared his throat. "Ruling house of Verona is: Bob Forbes as Prince Escalus, Logan Lockwood as Count Paris, and Chandler Nash as Mercutio." He clapped after he finished saying the names, then raised a hand seconds later for the room to quiet.

   "House Montague," he called, glancing around the room with a teasing smile. "Mr. Henry Poole as the patriarch, Mrs. Leah Mason as the matriarch, Charles Fell as Benvolio, Ethan Rogers and Harry White as servants of the household. As our Romeo..." He glanced around the room, a grin forming around his lips. "A big applause for our Romeo, Stefan Salvatore!"

   Florence glanced at Stefan, who held an embarrassed smile. The members clapped their hands, cheering for him as if they had known him for years. He only nodded and mouthed a thank you, obviously unsure on what to do. That caused Florence to let out a chuckle, and him to glance at her, and smile. 

   "House Capulet!" Mr. Marlowe called, quieting the room. "Mr. Grayson Gilbert as the patriarch, Mrs. Miranda Gilbert as the matriarch, Harrison Day as Tybalt, Cher Gaines as the Nurse, Bruce Odom and Corey Phillips will be our servants of the household, and Rachelle Watson as Rosaline." He clapped as he looked at each cast member, grinning. When the room quieted down, he took a deep breath. "Now, it was very hard to cast our Juliet, which is why we had each girl that auditioned do so several times. After those several times, we have finally gotten our Juliet." He glanced around the room once again. "I want a big applause for our Juliet, Florence Gilbert!"

   At the mention of her name, Florence's smile fell. The people clapped around her, some of them calling her name and telling her what a great job she did. All she could do was stand there and stare, surprised that she would even be picked to play a lead role for a play that she was dragged to. She slowly glanced at Cher, and her best friend held a big grin and clapped the loudest. Then, she looked over at her sister-in-law, Miranda, and she was clapping and laughing. Her brother was also clapping, smiling softly but not as wide as his wife. Finally, she turned to Stefan. His smile was the biggest.

   Her heart was beating wildly, her palms were sweating, and the tips of her fingers were tingling. Once again, she didn't know if it was because of Stefan or because of the situation she was in.

   He was the one that drove her home, the smile still on his lips. She had told him to wipe that smile from his face several times, but he only laughed. She leaned her head back on the seat and watched him. There was something about Stefan Salvatore that made her stomach flip and her heart to act all silly, as if she were sick. It was a strange feeling, warm but strange. 

   Florence got out of the car and slowly walked to her front door, Stefan following behind her. When she stood on the porch, she turned and looked down at Stefan with a soft smile. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

   He nodded. "Tomorrow," he said. "You did say Cher, Bob, and Charles were planning something in the outskirts of town, right?"

   "Yup," she nodded. "Unless you don't want to go."

   "Are you going?"

  "I am," she said, a soft smile spreading around her lips. "So, I'll see you tomorrow."

   "I'll see you tomorrow," he chuckled, nodding. 

   "Bye."

   "A thousand times the worse," he began, laying a foot on the first step to her front porch, "to want thy light. Love goes toward love, as schoolboys from their books, but love from love, toward school with heavy looks."

   Florence laughed and shook her head. "Really, Stefan?"

   "It is my soul that calls upon my name," he continued, a teasing smile on his lips. "How silver-sweet sound lovers' tongues by night, like softest music to attending ears."

   She rolled her eyes, but laughed. "Goodnight, Stefan."

   "Sleep dwell upon thine eyes," he continued with a soft laugh escaping him, "peace on thy breast! Would I were sleep and peace, so sweet to rest. Hence will I to my ghostly father's cell, his help to crave and my dear hap to tell."

   "I get it that you memorised Romeo and Juliet, but I'm tired," she said as she shook her head, grinning. "I'll see you tomorrow, Stefan—goodnight. A thousand times goodnight!"

   He grinned. "See, it wasn't so hard." He let out a small laugh and nodded, taking a step back. "Goodnight, Florence. I'll see you tomorrow."