A/N: This is my fiiiiiiiiiiiirst fic ever, so please R&R!
Title: One Look, One Thousand Words
Author: sparrowed
Rating: PG
Warnings: Slight coarse language, slight sexual reference
Pairing: Jack and Anamaria, of course!
Summary: Jack tells Anamaria about herself and her future just from a look at her hand. Who would've thought it'd seem so hard to handle!
One Look, One Thousand Words
by sparrowed
Damn. Damn, damn, damn. It's not enough!
Anamaria laid out her gold, yet rusty, coins on the bar counter in front of her, all in a horizontal line. Her eyes scanned them continuously, checking if she had counted them correctly. Usually she was right about everything, but whenever it was about herself, she always had second thoughts. She bit her lip in frustration.
It's been twelve months on the Pearl, and this was all I've saved all that time! This is bloody outrageous!
Anamaria was secretly saving for a new boat. She'd never dare to tell anyone on the crew about it, especially Jack Sparrow. Which was why she wouldn't tell the crew because they never kept their dirty mouths shut. Anamaria knew it would take a hell of a long time to gather enough money for a new boat. A new sailboat. But she also knew it would be a lot sooner than waiting for Jack to finally get what she wants.
The crew was scattered around the bar, meeting with family and old mates. Usually Jack was in company with the whores of Tortuga, but today, he was laying low. Jack sat right beside Anamaria, but he had her back to her and was facing Gibbs who was facing him too.
"Her, her... her – that entire table of ladies... I think her – her, her, her... her but I'd rather forget that night... her, her – uhh, her? I... think so? Okay, her... her, her –" Jack informed Gibbs, dashing his finger at the direction of each woman he pointed out, "... her, her... her last week... her... her! That lady right there! Wow, is all I can say. Anyway, her... her –"
"What are you talking about?" Anamaria intervened, whipping around to them.
Jack's mouth was agape, but he instantly shut it and flashed his teeth to her, "Like you say to me, love! None of your bloody business!"
Anamaria scowled but with a smirk, and then began to pocket her coins, one by one. Jack watched her for a minute, his eyes focused on her, then at her hand moving to and from the counter ... then he returned to his conversation.
"Her, her – no wait, I already said... no I haven't – no wait... I think I – no I... ohh!" Jack thought for a moment, stroking his braided goatee, then delivered a frustrated groan and poked Anamaria a couple of times on the shoulder to get her attention.
"Whaaat?"
"See what you've done? I've lost me concentration!" Jack shouted, pouting. Anamaria knew, whenever he shouted with his little charming pout of his, he was not sincerely furious. Anamaria smiled in the most feminine way possible, which was surprising for Jack, for she was the tough one.
"'course you have, Jack, you lose a lot of things. Your life for a few seconds, your hat, pistol, sword, compass, you name it..." Anamaria turned away and added, speaking into her neglected mug of rum, "... boats are yet another thing..."
Gibbs knew Jack wasn't going to finish their conversation, so he just raised his eyebrows, took his rum and scurried away. Anamaria took a sip of her rum and smiled innocently at Jack. He scowled and left it there. There was nothing he could say after that so he decided to change the subject. He knew by now Gibbs had ran away with his little bottle of rum, but he didn't care. There was an awkward silence between them; having Jack stare at her with those smoldering eyes didn't help her at all. Jack took a sip of his own rum and finally broke the silence.
"Where did y'get all the loot?" Jack asked out of curiosity.
"What loot?" Anamaria lied, with a shrug.
"Ana!" Jack sighed with a smile. "I may be daft but I ain't blind! I saw you counting money before!"
"I wasn't counting," Anamaria lied again. How could he have possibly seen her counting it anyway? He was too busy bragging about his sex life. Yeah, she knew exactly what he was talking about a moment before.
"So you admit you had money out on the counter just then, aye?" Jack caught her. For a daft man, he was very witty at the most unexpected times.
Anamaria grinned, "You caught me."
Jack returned her grin, with one of his seductive smirks, "Can I ask you what you're saving for?"
"I'm not saving for anything." Anamaria lied yet again, a little too harshly. She knew he was going to catch her again.
Jack let out a soft "Ahh" and leaned against the counter, tilting his head so he could see her entire face.
"You know Ana, for a pirate you are an awful liar!" Jack quipped. "I've learned from experience, how to tell when people are lying, and you love, are too obvious!"
The pair laughed but soon stopped at the awkwardness between them. Anamaria never felt awkward around anyone, especially Jack, usually she's let Jack know everything she was thinking. But lately they've been having midnight talks while watching the stars, or watching the sun set together. It's gotten more awkward ever since. Jack bit his lip and broke the silence again.
"Give me your hand," Jack commanded softly.
His voice was soft and sensual. Anamaria calmed down when he broke the silence, but once his words got into her head, she realized she'd calmed down too soon. She waited a moment, then extended her hand to Jack's.
He held it in his hand for a minute, caressing it, letting his fingers travel between her fingers. Finally he realize what he was doing. Jack shook his head nervously, which wasn't like the confident, outgoing Jack.
"I'm going to read your palm. See what I can tell about you from just a glance of your palm," Jack informed, stroking her palm.
Anamaria tried to think of something smart to say, but then reluctantly nodded, and choked out a soft "okay".
Jack thumbed the back of her hand, and he grinned, letting out a soft chuckle.
"What?" Anamaria asked, hoping it was nothing embarrassing towards her.
Jack laughed again, "You know, for a woman who works non-stop on a pirate ship, your hands are quite smooth!"
Anamaria chuckled, she was surprised herself. She worked day and night, during the heat and the storm, and nothing really damaged her dark skin. She watched Jack's thumb feel the back of her hand, it sent shudders through her arm. She felt herself feeling weaker and weaker by the second.
He's only touching my hand! Why do I feel like I have five cannon balls chained to my arm?
"Silky, too..."
Anamaria snapped out of her trance when he heard Jack talk, "What was that?"
"Huh?" Jack looked up at her, blushing. Very, very unlike Jack to blush. Kind of adorable, really. "Oh, nuh-nothing, love, nothing."
Jack finally spoke after yet another prickly silence, "You have a strong physical nature. You like challenges, especially those with an element of risk. Like me! Heheh... you are willing to try and try again until you achieve success. You like living in wide-open spaces. That's what I think... sounds correct don't ya think?"
Anamaria laughed and nodded. It sounded a lot like her; she definitely wanted to know more.
"You have good instincts, so you can probably predict how things will turn out before everyone else. You are self-confident. Your tendency to act first and think afterwards is one of your weaknesses." Jack added, "Pretty much explains your weather predictions all the time!"
"Where did you find this out?"
"From your... fingers," Jack told her, looking at every single one of these digits. Anamaria couldn't help but sigh. She'd never seen Jack be so gentle, with anyone, in fact.
"Your nails say..." Jack started, "... your life will have ups and downs, and highs and lows repeatedly. Fortunately, you can adjust to defeats. Expect great success in the future."
Anamaria smiled. It's true, her life did have her ups and downs. She met Jack, he stole her boat. She met him again and went on a voyage with him, then lost him, then found him again, then he was sent to an island. The story just keeps on going. She knew the pleasurable experience she was in now, was going result in something terrible happening in the future. She just hoped it wasn't towards Jack again. Jack flipped her hand over.
"You're life line..." Jack traced over the line with his thumb, sending shivers down her arm once again. He smiled again, "This is good news for me too! These lines that are jutting upward are called effort lines, and indicate a person who puts great effort in their work. You certainly do, Ana."
No, not another awkward silence!
Jack's thumb moved above the line to a shorter line, his thumb tracing it once again. He looked up at her and gave her one of those goddamn roguish smirks again. He knew she was enjoying this, and he was too.
"You have an outstanding intellectual ability, and a lot of common sense. You won't give up on a project until the end! However, your one weakness is that you're too independent. Don't be afraid to ask for advice." Jack smiled at his own prediction.
"I don't need advice." Anamaria spat. She wanted her tough cookie attitude to show to at least once during this! She felt like one of the stupid wenches falling for Jack's charm, but she let him do this because this wasn't his usually charming way. He acted differently towards Anamaria, like she was the only one.
Jack frowned when he traced his finger over the two lines, which touched, "Is there something you're not telling me, Ana?"
"No, why?" she lied. She thanked God he wasn't looking at her.
"You have a sensitive side with deep emotional feelings." He explained, "Sometimes you are sensible and cautious, while other times you are foolhardy. Try to control your impulses and your changeable attitude."
Jack finally looked at her and grinned arrogantly, "Anamaria, has a sensitive side. I never would've seen the day!"
Anamaria laughed and smacked him on the shoulder with her free hand, "I do not!"
"Hands don't lie, Ana! Hands don't –"
"Hands don't lie? Do you realize how ridiculous you sound right now?"
"When do I not? Alrighty, next..."
Anamaria smiled at the small laugh they shared together, definitely eliminating the awkwardness. She enjoyed the feeling of Jack's warm hand holding hers, but she hoped to God it didn't look suspicious to everyone in the bar.
"You're destiny line..." Jack's smile disappeared. "Heh... uh... you are destined for a very happy marriage, even though you may not achieve astounding material success. Maybe it's not marriage... but... I don't know..."
"What's wrong? I'm not going to get married, Jack! Not now, at least..."
Jack issued her a wry smile, "Yes, not now. But you will... forget about that one, the one that matters is the Heart Line!"
"The Heart Line?"
Jack nodded, "Mhm, it is an important line that governs emotion, romance and marriage!"
Oh, bugger.
Anamaria's heart started beating faster and faster.
This oughta be interesting.
Jack smiled, "How like you. You have a rigid personality and you expect everyone else to conform to you. You'll have to make yourself more flexible to achieve a lasting relationship, savvy?"
"Are you insulting me, Sparrow?" Anamaria teased with a laugh.
"No, I'm telling you the truth! Also, it says that love makes you laugh and it makes you cry. The longer the Heart Line is, the more emotional you are, and the more capable of jealousy or possessiveness. You have the potential for a joyful, permanent relationship if you just take your time. The one you've been searching for could be right in front of you..."
"Are you saying that the love of my life is right in front of me?" Anamaria asked, wondering if Jack was hinting her.
"You tell me." Jack said with a smirk.
He's definitely hinting me! Okay, Ana, just tell him your secret, and everything's clear between us!
Jack returned to his precious rum, only to be stopped by Anamaria.
"Jack, there is actually something I need to tell you. What I'm saving for to be more specific." Anamaria started.
His eyes shone something enigmatic. "I'm listening."
"I'm saving for a boat, Jack. A new sailboat." Anamaria confessed. She knew he was going to ask why, and the reason was quite insulting towards him, which might end in an argument. Her own prediction might come true, a pleasurable moment between them ends in an argument. Another "Up and Down" moment.
Jack looked shocked for a second, but shook it off, "I see... well, I'm not going to argue with you, so I'm not going ask why, okay?"
Anamaria sighed in relief, "That's a good decision."
Another prickly silence. Anamaria looked at Jack, who hadn't stopped gazing at her. His eyes burned into hers and she felt like the room was spinning. Anamaria could see he was breathing heavily, she was too. She realized he was leaning forward now, but he did it so painfully slowly –
His lips, which were surprisingly soft, brushed against hers, and she felt his right hand brush her right cheek. She could not look at anything but his eyes. Damn the man and those eyes. She'd kill anyone who'd have the nerve the reach out and gouge them out. She'd avenge them. Was she delirious? She just realized that she was overprotective of these eyes! But it wasn't the eyes she liked, it was everything.
Anamaria wanted to pull away, she thought she looked like another one of Jack's whores, but she didn't feel that way. Usually if Jack wanted to kiss one, he'd grab them by the shoulders, and share a huge, wet kiss with them for five minutes. But not this time. Jack took his time with her, waiting until she was ready. She was ready alright.
Finally, after a moment of lust, they finally –
"Jack!" Gibbs called behind them.
Anamaria and Jack jumped away from each other like lightening had just struck between them. She could've sworn she would've grabbed the nearest empty rum bottle, smashed it against the counter and stabbed Gibbs on every part of his body. She clenched her fists as she stared with great fury at Gibbs, her mouth agape.
You hairy little bastard! Why did you have to ruin everything! This is probably what Jack meant by "Ups and Downs!" You bastard! I'll never forget this, Gibbs!
Jack smirked at Anamaria and winked at her, and she suddenly felt quite excited, her fury disappearing after one wink. Why was this Captain having such an effect on her! Usually Anamaria was a woman of self-control, but not with Jack. Not anymore. Jack looked as if he was so damn proud of himself, the man should be anyway. How many men can make Anamaria feel the way Jack makes her feel? This is Anamaria we're talking.
Jack, still grinning, turned to Gibbs and maintained his smirk.
"Yes, Gibbs?"
A/N: Hamster dance, anyone? dances Read and review, pleeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaase! 'Twas my first fic indeed, and if it were up to me, it SUCKED! Tell me if it sucked or not, please do...