With Rosie's support, Romeo begins exploring his sexuality - and ends up running into Julian again. In spite of their obvious attraction, Romeo now feels less sure of himself than ever, and leaves without even telling Julian his name. Everything changes when he meets the openly gay Julian at a party and finds himself sharing a kiss with him. Deep down, he knows something is wrong: All he feels for Rosie is friendship, and all he feels for his friends' intolerance is guilt. On the surface, Romeo has it all: success on the basketball court, a group of good friends, the companionship of the beautiful Rosie. He had to sit down as he remembered that night. “That man you hurt, you'd seen him before, right? At the party?” Rome nodded. Rome blushed, just hearing the way Julian said his name.
Just Julian provides insight into the struggle against homophobia, reminding LGBTQ readers that they are not alone. Duke, Paris's mother and Romeo's vice-principal, the two boys decide to take a stand for their right for respect. But Romeo's old friends come after the couple, resulting in a vicious fight that puts both Julian and Romeo in the hospital. As the two begin to fall in love, Julian finds strength he never knew he had, coming out from hiding behind his paintings and brokering peace between Romeo and Ty.
But Julian can't deny his attraction to Romeo, who is confused about his feelings and embarrassed by his past behaviour. But Romeo has always identified as straight - and he hangs out with a group of guys who hurt Julian's friend Paris and harassed his cousin Ty. He sees a glimmer of hope after meeting the similarly out-of-place Romeo at a party and sharing a kiss with him.
After years of bullying at school, he is so depressed that his single mother must stay home from work to care for him, and the only outlet for his feelings is his artwork. Nineteen-year-old Julian doesn't see any point to life. But you could call me Romeo I guess, if you wanted to.