43 Romeo and Juliet

Dakota and I walked into our Honors English Literature class and took our seats. I got out a notebook and my Romeo and Juliet book, just when the bell rang.

"So, can anyone tell us why we study Romeo and Juliet?" Ms. Burke asked, looking over the class. "Or any of William Shakespeare's works, for that matter?"

"Well, we study Romeo and Juliet to tell kids not to fake-kill themselves unless they tell someone first." Jerry Ellis, one of the class clowns, said and everyone laughed.

"Well... yes... good point, Jerry." Ms. Burke never getting upset with students. That was probably why she was most of the students' favorite teacher. But we knew the line not to cross, and she gave us a bit more leeway. "But for what other reason is Romeo and Juliet still required reading in high schools today?"

"Because teachers like to torture us?" another student asked.