It was their third anniversary, and Jack was sick in bed with a fever. It was the most disappointed he had been in himself in a long time. He smiled weakly at Elizabeth as she walked into the cabin, a wet rag and a tub of water in her hands. She smiled back, though somewhat worriedly. She sat the tub down and pulled a chair up next to the bed, pushing back his bandana slightly. He reached up and grabbed her hand, stopping her.
"What are you doing that for, love?" He asked, his voice scratchy. He coughed a little, trying to clear his throat. She narrowed her eyes at him.
"I need to put this on your forehead to cool you off," She said, holding up the cloth. He shook his head, pursing his lips.
"I can't take my bandana off!" He exclaimed, keeping his hand firmly on his forehead. Elizabeth sighed.
"And why not?" She asked, getting annoyed with him. She was already worried enough, she didn't need to deal with his stubbornness. He stared at her in disbelief, looking like he thought she should know this.
"I never take my bandana off!" He said. She shook her head, and in one swift motion pushed his hand out of the way and pushed the bandana off of his forehead. He made a sound of anger and reached up and touched his revealed forehead and hairline, his mouth open in shock. She quickly plopped the cloth down on his head, and it sat where the bandana was previously. She smiled.
"There. The same areas are covered up, and everything is fine and dandy," She said happily, taking his hands in hers. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, shaking his head slightly.
"You will be the death of me, woman."
She gasped, looking hurt. "Now, don't say that, Jack." His face softened at her tone, and he smiled slightly, coughing again.
"You're right, that did sound a bit harsh... you will be the cause of a few moments of annoyance, but in the end, many lifetimes of enjoyment," He said, smiling brightly. He then closed his eyes in a moment of pain, reaching up and pressing the cloth hard to his forehead. Her eyes widened and she pulled herself closer to him, placing her hand delicately on top of his.
"Shh, shh, Jack... I'm here," She said, putting her face at the same level as his, her lips lightly brushing his cheek when she spoke. She massaged his forehead gently through the cloth, and reached down and took his hand in her free one. He sighed after the spell was over, opening his eyes and turning his head to look at her, a slight smile tugging at his lips.
"You have a very good bedside manner, my dear," He said, looking at her. She smiled.
"Only when it comes to you, I suspect," She said, turning her head so she could look at him properly. "You need to rest, Jack. Stop being so stubborn and settle down and rest." He sighed, pouting.
"You just want to be rid of me," He sighed, assuming a high and mighty air and looking off into the distance. She sighed, and rolled her eyes.
"Oh, now you're just being fickle," She said, shaking her head. She then stood up and pulled the sheet up to Jack's neck, tucking it around him tightly. He quickly pulled his arms from underneath the covers, acting uncomfortable. She laughed at the sight of him, looking like a disobedient child. He smiled slightly, looking up at her.
"I'm sorry about all this, love. I was supposed to show you an extremely fun night," He said, looking disappointed that they were missing their fun. She sat down on the side of the bed, reaching out and caressing his cheek, running her fingers over his mustache.
"Well, this is fun, isn't it?" She asked. He scoffed. As if this could be as fun as the other type of fun they'd be having. "Hey, it'll finally be me taking care of you instead of you taking care of me." He pouted again, reaching up and playing with her fingers.
"I like taking care of you," He said, finishing up with a cough.
"Yes, well, you actually can't in this situation. Now Jack... I want you to go to sleep. Now. Don't make me start counting." He smiled, and then pulled the covers up to his eyes in mock fright.
"What's going to happen when you get to ten? Am I going to be punished?" He asked, raising his eyebrows and revealing his face. She rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile.
"Come on, now, Jack," She pleaded, softening her tone, "Do it for me." He looked at her for a moment, smiling, and then nodded his head.
"Alright, love, now that you've given me a good reason."
"Your health isn't a good reason?"
"Yes, but doing it for you is much more better," He said, smiling happily. She laughed, and then leaned down and pressed her lips lightly to his, worried about the amount of heat that was radiating from him. She ran her hand lightly over his face as he closed his eyes, smiling at the contact from his lovely wife. He coughed again slightly before drifting off to sleep. She kissed his cheek lightly, and then walked out of the cabin silently to check on Mr. Gibbs and the crew.
A few hours later Elizabeth found herself racing back to the cabin, hearing Jack making distressed moaning noises in his sleep. She burst into the room and saw Jack moving his head back and forth, mumbling in his sleep. He was sweating profusely, and the cloth had fallen off Jack's forehead and onto the ground. She could have sworn she heard him mutter the word "bandana." She walked over and picked up the cloth, ringing it out and then dipping it in the tub of water she had placed at the bottom of the bed, and then put it on Jack's forehead again.
She sat down on the side of the bed, grabbing onto his flailing hands. The height of the fever had come and he was delirious in his sleep.
"Elizabeth... don't... no... love..." He said, whipping his head around. She caressed his face lightly.
"I'm here, Jack. Don't worry about anything, darling," She said, lying down next to him on the bed, winding her arm around his middle and wrapping her legs up in his. She picked up his arm and put it around her shoulders, and almost immediately he tightened his hold on her shoulder. She laid her head down in the crook of his neck and kissed his collarbone tenderly. He leaned over and found her forehead and nuzzled into her.
"Elizabeth..." He whispered.
"I'm right here, Jack. I'm not going anywhere," She said, kissing the underside of his chin. She settled into him and he calmed down, falling back asleep after a few moments.
She awoke early the next morning, and the first thing she did was reach up and push away the cloth so she could feel Jack's forehead. He felt a lot cooler, and she thought the fever might have broken. She hoped this was true. She pulled his bandana back down, arranging it the way she knew he liked it, and then smoothed his hair back down when she thought it looked right. She stared down at him for a few moments, thinking he was the most angelic looking pirate she had ever seen. She leaned down and brushed her lips against his, keeping the contact as light as a feather. It was enough to make his eyes flutter open. She smiled sweetly and it was returned with a toothy grin.
"How are you?" She whispered, searching his face.
"Tremendous," He said, leaning forward and kissing her forehead.
"Oh? And what caused this sudden change?"
"A night wrapped up in you, lovely," He said, smiling. "But I still feel somewhat unusual. There's only one thing I can think of that could improve my condition."
"And what might that be?"
"A kiss from you, my dear," He said, closing his eyes and waiting for it to happen. She laughed, shaking her head.
She gave him what he wanted. And he was back up and rampaging around the Pearl at the end of that day.