Honor Among Thieves || Book Two

~25~

Once on the Black Pearl, after a heated exchange between Barbossa and Jack, the latter beckoned Sera into his cabin to discuss the elephant in the room. Or rather, the elephant inside of her...

Neither of them knew how to start the conversation so they ended up sitting in awkward silence on his bed until finally, Jack worked up the courage to speak. "So," He cleared his throat and stole a sidelong glance at her. "How long have you been...this way?"

"Six or seven months, I believe." She toyed with one of her many rings. His eyes widened. "Six or seven months? You're about to pop!"

"Mmm-hmm."

"How, exactly, did that happen?" He asked, chewing his lip as he nodded toward her swollen stomach. She glowered at him. "Seriously? Jack, you know full well how it happened."

A crease formed on his brow. "I do, but I thought we took precautions to prevent such...surprises."

"We did! Well," She lowered her eyes shyly. "The last time we were together, you neglected to do your part."

"Wha--I did not!"

Her eyebrows shot up. "Oh yes you did! I told you and told you, but y--"

"If I recall correctly, you were begging me to do just the opposite." He retorted with a sly gleam in his eyes. Sera's face grew hot as she recalled the events of the night in question. Maybe she was just as culpable in this as he was...

"Seven months." He murmured, tearing her away from her scandalous thoughts. "Has it really been that long? I feel like I've been in the Locker a hundred years."

"I'm not sure how long it's been, really. With everything going on, I haven't been able to keep track of it as I should." She replied, struggling to ignore the sudden wave of panic rising within her. What if she was farther along than seven months? What if--She relaxed. By the same token, she may not be as far along as she thought either...

Still, her bump would beg to differ.

"Do you think we can do this, Jack?" She murmured quietly, her voice hushed by unshed tears. He draped an arm around her shoulders and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek. "Of course we can, love."

"You don't sound very confident."

"Well," He lowered his eyes. "I know you can do this, I'm not certain that I can."

She looked concerned. "What do you mean?"

"I'm not sure if ol' Jackie is ready to be a father." He admitted, keeping his eyes trained on the floor. Sera set her mouth in a thin line. "Are you saying you don't want the baby?"

"No!" He shook his head fervently. "No, no, no. I didn't even come close to sayin' that, dearie. What I meant was that I'm not entirely sure how to be a father..."

"Neither do I." She said. "Know how to be a mother, I mean. We'll just have to take it all one piece at a time I suppose."

"Yes." Jack muttered more to himself than her. "One piece at a time..."

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"You left Jack to the Kraken?"

Elizabeth bristled at the sound of William's voice and even more at his question. She refused to look at him. "I had no choice, Will."

"You never told me."

"No." She glanced at him before returning her gaze to the sea, the subtle waves blackened by night. "I had no reason to. It was my burden to bear, not yours."