this is exactly what juliet has always wanted; she often struggles to admit it to even herself, because it’s such a scarily big change in their dynamic and relationship, but deep down, juliet has always known it. her message to hector was indirect, words spoken carefully in order to have a back up plan in case he doesn’t feel the same, but despite the safety net put in place, juliet wants hector at her door, she wants hector to be dramatic, she wants to finally know whether or not he feels anything more than platonic for her - but even as she thinks of this, she’s so afraid; she can’t lose hector’s friendship, she’d never recover if she did. “well i’m glad that you listened to that something,” she tells him, nervously.
“oh, i can believe it,” she chuckles. it’s never been only juliet who has had feelings for hector, in one way or another; he’s an extremely desirable person, and while not everyone is lucky enough to know how attractive he is on the inside, at the very least, they’re well aware of how attractive he is on the outside. juliet thinks it a blessing that she’s so well aware of both. “i had a good day,” she finally tells him. “a lot less busy than yours, from the sound of things. no single parents on my radar,” she laughs quietly, and a little awkwardly as she still isn’t addressing the elephant in the room. how could she? with the stakes feeling so high. “you don’t have to apologize,” she tells him, more sincerity than awkwardness in her voice now. “you should know by now that i always love seeing you,” her voice softens even more.
she sits down with him. “of course you can,” she might be terrified for the question to come, but it’s always welcome with hector. “you’re doing great,” she laughs softly again, unable to stop herself from encouraging hector, even while she’s terrified of what’s to come. then finally, he asks. “that’s… bold, hector, brave. you’ve always been so brave,” she tells him, stalling out of nerves without realizing it. “well,” she readjusts in her seat. “i- well… yeah,” her heart beats against her chest harder than it ever has before. “yeah of course i thought about it,” she stands up, restless with anxiety, and she takes a couple of paces away before turning back to face him again. “i mean, come on,” she says, implying that it only makes sense that she would feel that way, but she finds herself unable to do more than imply it, finding herself speechless, her words stuck in her throat.
“come on, what? like it’s obvious?” he let out a soft laugh, only because he was just as nervous. her words made him laugh and he took in the way she got up as if she couldn’t stay still at the thought of it. she had called him brave so he was trying to be. it was clear he was going to have to be the one to be honest here, or at least lead them in the direction they both seemed so scared to go. so he took a deep breath, thought about how reed would tell him to speak from the heart and he did just that. “jules, you know i wouldn’t have survived out there in Texas without you right? Your letters, your phone calls, the idea that you were here, thinking if me in any way. that shit kept me grounded, you know? especially after i had my surgery. i’d count down the fucking minutes until i heard your voice on the other side and i always regretted not asking you to come. i didn’t want you to see me all laid up, barely able to walk and shit. but god how i wished you were there. to hold my hand. to laugh with when the doctors were being ridiculous. to just..be with you. i-i never like that. for no one. to just want to be around someone no matter what we do or where we go or how we do it? to want to make you laugh and happy and just..god, I used to be out there thinking of every moment we had together in high school. how stupid i was to not try to be your boyfriend. so much time just...wasted.”
the more he spoke, the easier it was to find his courage and he eventually got to his feet so he could walk over to her. “if i had a dollar for every time i thought about kissing you, or holding your hand or just being close to you, i’d be one rich dude.” the admission made his cheeks blush but he kept pressing forward, eventually reaching out to take her hands so she could actually look at him. “look, you know i’m no writer or poet so my words aren’t always the prettiest but i..i’ve got real feelings for you. Like when I see you walking down the street music plays in my head kind of feelings. Like the idea of you out there with someone else, falling in love makes me feel so fucked up in the head kind of feelings. And that shit scares me. Because I don’t deserve you, at all. Like fuck, you are..everything and I’m just..I’m just Hector.”
He brought her hands to his lips, pretty sure he was fucking it up with his words. There was so much he wanted to say to her, so much he wanted to confess but one thing he knew from the movies is that despite all the iconic lines, nothing beat the long awaited kiss. So with his heart still beating fast he met her eyes for a moment, then glanced at her lips. He brought one hand up to rest on one of her cheeks and brushed his thumb across it before finally leaning in to do something he had dreamed of since he was 15. He pressed his lips to hers and held her close, kissing her deeply, without any clear sign or plan of pulling away soon.