Smile More (Hamilton Fanfiction)

Chapter 2

You awoke the next morning with a stiff neck. You rolled your head and massaged the back of your neck. You used to have much finer sleeping arrangements many years ago and your body seemed to curse you for every rough night's sleep but you were grateful you even had a hammock. It could have been worse. You looked over to Alexander's hammock and found it empty. Where is he? You shifted your gaze to the corner of the room where the supplies were kept. On top of the neat pile was a tricorn hat. You climbed out of your hammock with some difficulty, careful not to fall over on your shaky legs, and made your way to the corner. 

You examined the hat. It was big but you hoped that your hair would fill it and keep it in place.

It was a mission to get your hair securely inside your hat but you eventually figured something out. There was no mirror so you muttered, "good enough" and set out to find a way back on deck. After a minute of searching and racking your brains to remember how you got down here in the first place, you found the set of wooden steps that led to the open air. The heavy trap door was already open so you climbed on deck.

You were hit with the smell of the open ocean and bile rose to your throat. Shit. You struggled to keep from running into men as you staggered to the ship railing. Holding your hat to your head to stop it from catching in the wind and flying off, you emptied the contents of your stomach, the depths swallowing it with a faint splatter. 

When you ran out of food to throw up, you wiped your mouth with the back of your hand and forced down a few gags. You turned and were met with Alexander, he had been standing behind you, watching you. He looked slightly disgusted and you cringed. 

"Seasick?" He asked, expression changing to warmth. 

"Yeah," You croaked, throat burning, as you adjusted your hat to hide a few strands that had been dislodged in the commotion.

"You look good," He offered without you having to ask. Alexander tossed you a piece of dried meat and you caught it in one hand. You decided to wait until your stomach had fully settled before taking a bite. "Found it while I was roaming around."

"Thanks," You realised that you spent much of your time thanking him. 

"How was your sleep?" Alexander asked.

"I've slept better," You said, unconsciously rolling your neck. 

"On the streets of London?"

"Gods no," You laughed. Curiosity flashed across Alexander's face as he processed what you just said.

You spent the next hour discussing the past with Alexander. You kept the details brief and twisted most of the facts. Alexander, however, did not hold back. He was a bastard child, his mother a whore and his father out of the picture since age ten. His mother died of an illness when he was twelve. He went to a cousin after her death but he committed suicide, leaving Alexander to fend for himself. Alexander took matters into his own hands and drank in every piece of knowledge that could be crammed onto paper. He began clerking and trading goods to earn income. In his spare time, he plotted and planned for the future. He told you that he had always longed for war so he could make something of himself. You had laughed at him and explained that making something of yourself was not all it's cracked up to be. He became sullen when you pointed out that a legacy could be negative so you shut up. Alexander broke your silence with a question.

"Why is it that you can't read?" 

You thought about it for a while. "I can't read English," You admitted. 

"Then what can you read?"

"Elder Futhark," You replied, unsure if he would know what you mean.

"What is that?" Alexander inquired. 

"Runes," You explained. 

"How does that work?"

"Every sound has a rune, every rune has a name. It's complicated." You said shaking your head.

"When did you learn to read them?" 

"A long time ago," You answered. "But they are of no use to me here."

"My offer to teach you still stands," Alexander reminded you. 

You smiled and said, "I will graciously accept your offer."

Alexander grinned and led you back to the room the two of you shared. He wasted no time collecting the supplies he needed to teach you.

Alexander taught you the basics of English and the things you would need. He taught you the alphabet and how to spell simple words. Since you weren't a child and could already speak the language, you quickly got the hang of it. There were a few distracting moments when all you could think about was how close Alexander was but you willed yourself to concentrate.

It was in the afternoon when Alexander began telling you what words you might see on the  Mainland streets. Alexander noticed that you were beginning to lose interest from the long hours of learning. He offered to give you a break but you refused so he changed his approach. He went and rifled through his piles of books until he found one that would be suitable. It wasn't a simple book for a beginner in reading English but you would have been able to understand the basis of the book. Alexander returned to your side and sat down, he handed you the book and you examined its cover. 

You read the book, sounding out the letters until you found a word that fit. Alexander intervened only occasionally to fill in some words that you had mispronounced. Maybe the rhythm of the ship had lulled him or perhaps listening to you struggle to read aloud tired him, but eventually, his breathing slowed and his head rested on your shoulder as his eyes flickered closed. You looked down at the man you had met yesterday. You didn't have the heart to wake him so you continued reading, whispering now. A smile crept across your face every time Alexander made a noise in his sleep. 

Too soon, Alexander woke up and came to his senses with apology after apology rolling off of his tongue. You simply smiled and told him that it was alright but didn't mention the fact that you had enjoyed every second of it. 

It must have been midday but at that point, so the two of you went on a hunt for food. Alexander found dried meats as you leaned against a wall with your head down, hat lowered to hide your face. You realised that leaning against the wall increased the intensity of the ship's transverse motion and your stomach began to churn so you pushed off from the wall as Alexander returned. 

The two of you ate and went to bed with little conversation, Alexander falling asleep on you looming like a shadow. To tell the truth, you were glad to finally sleep, just to escape the awkwardness and your idiotic blushing.