Lagoon

Sunset

She sat on the steps of the Pearl, trying to focus on the gentle rocking of the ship, and the salty smell of the sea, long losing the feel of the hardwood underneath her, as her body was numb with nerves.

Occasionally she would crane her neck, or twist around to try and catch glimpses of Jack, hoping he would give her some modicum of reassurance, but the most she got was a few fleeting moments of eye contact, where his gaze would soften for a split second, transforming from his normal steely 'captain' countenance to that special warmth reserved only for her.

"How long are you going to sit there?"

A crick in her neck made her wince when she looked around to find the object of her nerves, her hand shooting up to rub at it. Will was standing over her, staring at her as though she was a degenerate.

"It hasn't been that long."

He looked down at her with a mixture of suspicion and confusion.

"You've been sitting there for four hours, Elizabeth."

Had it been four hours?

She might say that she had noticed, but the overwhelming whirring of her thoughts had made time a flimsy thing ever since she had boarded the Pearl, flashes of doubt and then a fierce surge of anger at having doubt, snippets of her and Will playing on the shore as children, and the knowledge that she was going to make him revisit all of that, question everything.

"I guess I have."

"Care to tell me what you're thinking about?"

He asked her the question as though it was his right to know, as though he expected that she knew that it was his right to know, and the hidden accusatory tone to his voice was hard to miss.

"Nothing, really. I'm fine, Will."

"Why are you hiding things from me? In case you have forgotten, I am your fiance."

"Will-"

"You have been distant with me the entire voyage to rescue Jack."

It wasn't something she could even begin to deny. But she was going to deny the concrete fact of being his fiance. Ever since their wedding had been interrupted, it was as though they had morphed into two very different people, although she suspected that she was just who she had been all along, but Will, he was colder, harsh, as though something had sapped any happiness that he might have had away.

"Maybe I have."

He drew back, and she realized that he was looking for her to admit to something, or to a few somethings. He was looking for some relief of his own.

"Why? Were you pining for lost love?"

"Excuse me?"

That came out of her mouth a split second before it occurred to her that everything he was about to accuse her of was probably true.

"You think I didn't notice? The way you were always staring out at the sea, the dead expression in your eyes. It was as though a part of you died with him."

"He is our friend, Will. I was sad about losing a friend."

He clenched his fists against his breeches for a second, and she almost thought that he was going to walk away.

"Can we talk below deck?"

Considering that option, she decided that she would rather them shout at each other out of earshot of everything else. Rising from the stairs, she stepped around Will, and found Jack adjusting some rope or other. He stopped when he saw her, worry flashing in his eyes almost too quickly for her to catch.