Afloat (The Music Freaks Pirate AU Drake)

[ Chapter 1 - Capsizing ]

Pirates had taken them, Drew and Jake. It was a bad situation already, being kidnapped by pirates, but what was worse was the storm. The two boys couldn't see the storm; they were under the deck of the boat, with no view to the outside. However, they could hear the thunderclaps, the loud tapping of running feet on the wooden deck above, and the shouts of panicked men.

Drew drew his legs closer to him. He knew the storm was likely very bad and dangerous. After all, pirates most likely had plenty of experience of storms on sea, but if they were scared... chances are that they would have a chance of... death. Drew squeezed back the tears that sprung to his beautiful brown eyes. No crying, no crying. That was weak, right? Back in the castle, his father, the king, always said that crying was a sign that he wasn't ready to lead the kingdom. Not like he wanted to lead it, he hated their kingdom, but he still wanted to be strong.

He felt a cold yet comforting hand on his cheek, and he looked up. Jake had placed his hand on Drew's cheek. Drew felt himself blush slightly, as Jake scooted closer to him and embraced him in a hug. Drew wanted to pull back from embarrassment, but Jake's hug was so genuine and so solacing, that he couldn't pull away.

"I know you're upset," Jake mumbled quietly in the embosom.

Drew shook his head and lied, "What? No I'm not.".

Jake pulled away from the hug, but held onto Drew's shoulders firmly, and stared the shorter boy in the eye. His eyebrows were raised in skepticism and his eyes showed slight sadness.

"Drew... do you not trust me? You can tell me anything you want," Jake asked.

Drew averted his eyes. He trusted Jake and loved Jake, but he didn't like talking about his feelings, and he didn't like talking about his father, the source of why he hid his feelings. Stressed and frustrated thoughts clogged his mind and he glared at Jake, showing his obvious strain.

"Stop talking to me about feelings!" he flared.

Jake stared at him in shock of his outburst and was about to retort, when the boat started shaking and turning sideways, unstable. More men screamed on top of the desk and he heard people abandoning ship and splashing into the stormy waters to attempt to swim back to land. Drew shot up in panic. If the boat were to topple over, they'd be trapped inside the ship, left to drown. He ran to the locked door and started banging on it.

"OI, WHOEVER'S OUT THERE, LET US OUT!" he shouted in fear and anger.

He started punching the door, making his fists sore, but it was worth it. He would grasp at any chance of escape they had, no matter the consequences. Jake immediately walked up to Drew, placed a hand on his shoulder and pushed him lightly back.

"Hang on Drew," Jake says as he backs away determinedly.

Drew's eyes widened. Was Jake going to do what he thought Jake would do? Jake frowned resolutely and ran quickly towards the door, his elbow pointed towards the door. Jake would get hurt! Yet... Drew didn't stop him. It was better than possibly dying, stuck below the deck. The boat gave another big lurch and nearly turned over. Jake had to hurry.

Jake's elbow hit the door, yet it didn't bust open. The hinges however, were old and rusty, and Drew saw the door give way a tiny bit. Jake continued to kick at the door and run to the door to break it down, and eventually, the door opened. However, Jake was now bruised up and hurt, bleeding a bit. He looked quite tired and Drew ran to the boy to help him get out of the room. He looked back into the room, and saw what hurt Jake. Jake had hurt his leg on a piece of slightly sharp and protruding wood.

As they exited from under the deck, a flash of lightning struck and the waves grew rougher. Seawater spilled onto the deck and their bare feet became cold and wet. Jake's weight was starting to bear down on Drew.

"Hng..." Jake groaned, staggering, "I'm fine. It's just a scratch.".

"And you're bruised and bleeding and tired, so you're not fine," Drew deadpanned.

Drew's eyes surveyed the scene. No more pirates, they were far away, swimming as best as they could. It looked like a few pirates had not managed to make it and were overthrown by the large waves. Drew quickly took a piece of wood that had broken off from the ship and threw it in the sea. Anything to help keep them afloat would be useful.

A large wave suddenly hit the boat and Drew felt him sliding down. No no no! He had to bring Jake and jump NOW! Drew, along with Jake, jumped off the boat and swam away from the ship with the wooden board. As the large boat capsized, a large wave pushed them farther away from the mast that nearly flattened them. Drew and Jake breathed a sigh of relief.

"That could have gone worse..." Jake said, smiling wearily.

Drew shrugged and nodded.

"You seem grumpy. What, was it from earlier?" Jake quirked an eyebrow in annoyance, referring back to when Drew nearly cried.

"Why do you have to keep bringing that back?!" Drew snapped.

"Well then why must you be so aloof?" Jake narrowed his eyes, "You know what don't answer, I don't want to have to talk to you.".

Drew angrily stared at him and huffed. He averted his eyes. The sea was still rough, and riding out the storm would be dangerous. He started to try to swim away from the storm, and Jake followed suit. At least they weren't dead...