As You Like It: the fulfilment of a promise

In Rival Poet, Will makes a solemn promise to Kit that he will show two men dressed as men kissing on the English stage before he dies. In the first version of the novel, I showed him making good on that promise, but those scenes were ultimately cut, along with many others. However, while they didn’t fit into the finished book, I was loath to part with them, and they’ve been lurking in a folder marked ‘Old’ since then.

And now the time has come to share.

***

Even before he opened his eyes, he knew what day it was. The 30th of May, 1603. Ten years to the day. A brand new morning in a brand new world. Nothing special.

He sat up. Last night’s beer still stuck to the back of his throat. Swallowing drily, he walked to the window, opened the shutters and looked out at…

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