The Pimple.
Disclaimer: I don't own Pirates of the Caribbean. All I own is Coastline High School. Unless of course, there actually is a school with that name. If that be the case, I apologize for using it.
The alarm clock rang loudly. Fourteen-year-old Will Turner bolted up in bed. He wearily cracked open his eyes. He switched off the clock.
"I can't believe it's already 7:15", Will muttered. "It seems like only five minutes ago that I fell asleep. Now I have to get up. There just aren't enough hours in the night to get a decent amount of sleep."
Will got out of bed. He made his bed. He got dressed. Then he went into the bathroom. After using the toilet, Will stood over the sink, to brush his teeth. As he looked in the mirror, that's when he saw it for the first time.
There, right smack-dab in the middle of his forehead, was an ugly red spot. It was a pimple. Or as teenagers called it, a zit. Will stared at it for a moment. He tried to rub the pimple away. But it didn't budge. Will started shaking his head.
"No", Will whispered. "No", he said again, a little louder. "NOOOOOO!" he finally screamed out loud. Will just stood there. His body trembled in shock.
"This can't be happening", said Will. "I don't really have a pimple. All I have to do is close my eyes. And when I open them again, the pimple will be gone." Will closed his eyes. "One, two, three", he counted. He reopened his eyes. The pimple was still there. Will groaned. He buried his face in his hands.
At a time when most of his peers were plagued with skin problems, Will hadn't. He usually felt very lucky about that. But now, it seemed as if his luck had run out.
Will knew he had to think of a way to hide his pimple. He thought of an idea. Will rummaged through a drawer. He pulled out a band-aid. He gingerly placed it over the pimple. He winced slightly when he touched that area.
This was one of the reasons why Will didn't even bother to pop the pimple. He had heard that popping zits could be quite painful. And there was also a possibility that doing this could make matters worse.
Will made a quick stop back in his room. He found an old, blue baseball cap. He put in on his head, pulling the brim all the way down. Then Will went downstairs.
"Will, what took you so long?" asked his father, Bill. "I heard you screaming. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine", said Will. "I just woke up from a nightmare, which is why I was screaming. That's all." Will sat down to have his breakfast.
"Do you want to talk about it?" asked Bill.
"No, not really", said Will, through a mouthful of cereal.
"Will, how many times must I tell you not to talk with your mouth full?" asked Bill. "It's not good manners. Speaking of which, take off that hat.." Will gulped.
"I can't", he said.
"Why not?" asked Bill.
"I just can't", said Will.
"William", Bill said sternly. He sounded like he was about to begin a very long lecture. Will bit his lip. Nothing good ever came out of being addressed by his full first name. Will opened his mouth to speak. But then he was interrupted by the sound of a horn honking.
"That's my bus", said Will. "I have to go."
"Will, wait", said Bill. "I'm not done talking to you yet."
"I'm sorry, Dad", said Will. "But really, I must go. I love you. I'll see you this afternoon." Picking up his backpack, Will left the house, banging the door behind him.
"Kids these days", Bill said with a chuckle.
Will got onto his bus. He sat down in a empty seat. No one had seemed to notice his unusual appearance. That was a good thing. If Will could go the rest of the day without drawing attention to himself, he'd be in the clear.
"Hiya, Turner", said the unmistakable voice of Jack Sparrow. Will looked up. Jack was leaning over the seat behind his. A mischievous grin flashed across his face.
Will took a deep breath. Jack was his best friend. Despite this though, he was the last he was the last person Will wanted to see at a time like this.
"What do you want, Jack?" asked Will.
"Is a boy not allowed to say a friendly hello to his best friend?" Jack asked.
"I'm sorry", said Will. "It's not you, Jack. I'm just feeling a little upset today."
"I can see that", said Jack. That's when he noticed the hat for the first time. "What's with the hat?" he asked. "You never wear hats. Why would you want to start doing so now?" Jack then snatched the hat right off the top of Will's head.
"Hey!" shouted Will. "Give that back to me!"
"Make me", Jack replied childishly. He stopped when he saw the band-aid. "My God, boy!" he exclaimed. "What happened to your head?" Will touched his forehead. He was relived to find that the band-aid was still there.
"Well?" asked Jack. Will thought hard for a moment. He couldn't tell Jack the truth. He'd be the laughing stalk of the whole entire school if he did.
"I", Will began. He stopped. He just couldn't figure out what to say. "I was helping my dad cut wood", Will said at last. "He accidentally hit me on the head."
Jack raised an eyebrow. He wasn't sure if he believed Will's story. But he decided to leave it at that. He didn't want to bombard Will with too many questions. Will glanced around the bus. He appeared to be worried.
"Where is Elizabeth?" asked Will. He was referring to Elizabeth Swann, his girlfriend.
"I don't know", said Jack. He shrugged his shoulders.
"What do you mean you don't know?" asked Will. He was unable to keep the irritation out of his voice.
"I mean, I really don't know", Jack said again. "We stopped by Elizabeth's house. But she never came out. The bus driver had to honk his horn like five time. Then he finally just drove off."
Will stared down at the ground. This wasn't like Elizabeth at all. She had never, ever missed a single day of school. She was noted for her perfect attendance record. Will sure hoped nothing bad had happened to her.
"Cheer up, Will", said Jack. He gave a reassuring smile. "Elizabeth probably decided to walk today. Or maybe her dad drove her. Either way, I'm sure we'll see her when we get to school."
"I hope you're right", said Will. "I'd hate to have to cancel our plans for tonight."
"Oh, yeah", said Jack. "Tonight's your big date."
"I wouldn't really call it a date," said Will.
"What would you call it then?" asked Jack. "Because the last time I checked, you and Elizabeth were a couple."
"We ARE a couple", said Will. "It's just Elizabeth and I are quite young. We don't think it's the right time to go into a more serious relationship."
The bus stopped in front of the school. The school was called Coastline High School. Jack and Will stood up from their seats.
"I'll race you to our lockers", said Jack.
"No", said Will.
"How come?" asked Jack. "Don't tell me your bad mood has affected your ability to have fun."
"It's not that", said Will. "We are getting too old for these childish shenanigans."
"Are we?" asked Jack.
"Come on, Jack", said Will. "I'm 14. Going on 15. And you're 17."
"Fine, "Mister I'm in a hurry to grow up"", said Jack. "I'll see you in homeroom."
"Alright", said Will. Jack ran off. Will went to his locker. He got his books. Then he went to class.
When Will got to class, he found that Jack had beaten him to it. Will took his seat. The other students in the class were busy chatting aimlessly amongst themselves. Everyone quieted down when the door opened. Their teacher, Mr. Beckett, walked in.
Cutler Beckett was one of the most hated teachers in the school. He was also the shortest. But what Beckett lacked in height, he made up for with his strict manner.
"Good Morning, class", said Beckett.
"Good Morning, Mr. Beckett", the class answered in unison. Then Beckett proceeded to take attendance. All the students who were present, rose their hands when called upon. When it was over, Will raised his hand again.
"Yes, Will?" asked Mr. Beckett.
"Where is Elizabeth Swann?" asked Will. All the worry that had left him when he got off the bus had returned. It seemed it was back with a vengeance. Will could barely keep his voice level as he spoke.
"Miss Swann's father called the office this morning", said Mr. Beckett. "He said that she will not be joining us today."
"Why not?!" Will practically cried.
"I do not believe that is any of your concern, Mr. Turner", said Beckett.
A bell rang. That signaled it was time to change classes. All the students stood up from their seats.
"I'll expect to see you all back here for English", said Beckett.
Will's next class was math. This was the most unpopular subject in the school. Even the kids who were good at math dreaded stepping into that classroom.
The teacher was Davy Jones. Where as Mr. Beckett was just hated, Mr. Jones was both hated AND feared. In turn, he wasn't very kind to students, either. He had strong grudges against Jack and Will particularly. But they didn't know why though. What had they ever done to him?
"Here's your work, you slimy, useless brats!" he barked. "You've got the whole class period to do it. Whoever's not done by then, will have detention for the next month!"
Will got to work as soon as his paper was handed to him. He worked the whole time. Not once did he look up. Just the sight of Davy Jones alone was enough to strike fear into the heart of even the bravest person. Will would sometimes wake up in the middle of the night, after having a bad dream about his terrible teacher.
English was the next subject. Everyone filled back into Beckett's classroom. Though the class my have been taught by Beckett, Will liked it all the same. He was an excellent reader. That made the class a little bit more bearable.
They were in the middle of reading a novel. It was called Treasure Island. This was Will's favorite book. He had read it a few times before. But he always enjoyed it. No boy could resist a good old-fashioned tale about pirates and buried treasure. Will also found that he was a bit like the book's main character, Jim Hawkins. Jack loved this book too. He liked to think of himself as being kind of like Long John Silver.
After English, there was history. The history teacher was Joshamee Gibbs. He was the most popular teacher in the school. Everybody liked him.
Then it was time for lunch. Will went into the cafeteria. He got in line for his food. After that, Will sat alone, at a table in the far corner of the room. Jack sat at another table. He was joined by two more boys. Their names were Pintell and Ragetti. The three of them looked over at Will. Looks of concern were on all of their faces.
"I wonder what's wrong with Will", said Ragetti. Pintell hit him on his head. "OW!" Ragetti shouted. "Geeze! What was that for?!" he asked.
"Because you're an idiot!" said Pintell.
"Have you not noticed that there's someone missing?" asked Jack. Ragetti looked around.
"Who's missing?" asked Ragetti.
"Elizabeth", said Jack. He said this as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"I'm sorry", said Ragetti. "I forgot. And could you please tell me again why Will has that band-aid on his head?" he asked. Jack glared at Ragetti. This boy was clearly getting on his nerves.
"I'll tell you this one more time", said Jack. "Will's dad hit him on the head while they were cutting wood."
This was the part of the conversation that Will listened extra closely too. He smiled. He felt glad that Jack had used the story he had told him, instead of making something up. That was often the case with Jack Sparrow.
The last class of the day was science. Tia Dalma taught this subject. She had a fairly good reputation with the kids. But some of them would admit that they found her to be a bit odd.
At last, it was finally time to go home. Will got onto his bus. He stared out the window during the ride. His thoughts turned to Elizabeth. He wondered why she wasn't at school, and where she could be.
"How was school?" asked Bill, when Will got home.
"It was okay, I guess", said Will.
"Elizabeth called here a little while ago", said Bill. "I told her you'd call back when you got home. But I wonder why she called. Wasn't she supposed to be at school too?"
"Elizabeth was absent today", said Will. "I'd better call her. Hopefully, we won't have to postpone our plans for tonight."
"It's tonight that you're meeting her?" asked Bill.
"Yes, it is, Dad", said Will. "I've been telling you about this for weeks. Don't you remember?" he asked.
"I do", said Bill. "It's just that I didn't think it come so soon." Will picked up the phone. He dialed Elizabeth's number.
"Hello", Elizabeth said from the other end of the line. Will was so happy when she answered. He loved hearing her beautiful voice, after such a long day.
"Hi, Elizabeth", said Will. "It's me, Will."
"Will!" Elizabeth nearly squealed. "I'm so glad you called."
"Me too", said Will. "I missed you. Why weren't you at school today?"
"Oh, that", said Elizabeth. "I woke up with a headache this morning."
"But you're alright now, aren't you?" asked Will.
"Yeah", said Elizabeth. "I feel perfectly fine now."
"That means we can see each other tonight", said Will.
"I'm looking forward to it", said Elizabeth.
"So am I", said Will. "But am I going over to your house? Or are you coming over to my house? And at what time?" he asked.
"You're coming over to my house", said Elizabeth. "And 6:00 is a good time."
"Great", said Will. "That's all I wanted to know. I'll see you then. Bye."
"Bye", said Elizabeth. "I love you."
"I love you, too", said Will. He hung up the phone.
"Do you need me to drive you over to Elizabeth's house?" asked Bill.
"No, Dad", said Will. "Elizabeth only lives up the street. I'm think I'm able to walk that distance."
"But should I pick you up when you're done?" asked Bill. "It'll be pretty dark by then."
"That's what they have streetlamps for", said Will. "I'll walk back too."
"What time do you think you'll be back at?" asked Bill.
"I don't really know", said Will. "But I think it will probably be very late. You don't mind, do you, Dad?" he asked.
"No. Not at all", said Bill. "It is Friday night, after all. But do you want something to eat before you go?" he asked.
"No", said Will. "But thanks for asking. I think Elizabeth told me the other day that we're going to order a pizza." He went upstairs.
Will changed into clean clothes. He also put a new band-aid over his pimple. Will looked at it in the mirror. It hadn't changed from that morning. The zit wasn't any bigger, or smaller. It had stayed exactly the same. Will knew he couldn't let Elizabeth see the pimple. That would be a disaster. He put his hat back on, once again pulling it down over his head.
"I'm going now", Will yelled to his father when he came back downstairs.
"Have a good time", said Bill.
"I will", said Will. Then he left the house.
It took Will a few minutes to walk to Elizabeth's house. He knocked on the door. Elizabeth opened the door. She smiled when she saw Will. Will smiled back at her.
"Come in", said Elizabeth. Will walked into the house. He and Elizabeth hugged each other. Then Will took off his hat. He smoothed back his hair.
"What happened there?" asked Elizabeth. She pointed to the band-aid.
"What, this?" said Will. He froze. What was he going to say to her? He needed to think of a new excuse. Will couldn't tell Elizabeth what he had told Jack. That story was getting old. "I hit myself on the head when I was opening my locker", he said.
"Ouch", said Elizabeth. "That must have hurt. You can be so accident-prone sometimes, Will. But that's why I love you."
"Actually, it didn't hurt at all", said Will. "It just left a scratch. No big deal. I was more concerned with you, and your headache."
"I told you before", said Elizabeth, "I'm fine now.
"I know", said Will. "I just wanted to double-check."
"That's all very well and good", said Elizabeth. "But I don't think you came here just so we could talk about all of our various ailments."
"You're right", said Will. "Did you pick out a movie for us to watch?"
"Yes", said Elizabeth. She led Will into the living room. He plopped himself down on the couch. In this light, Will saw that Elizabeth was wearing make-up. It wasn't a lot. It was mostly around her chin. But it was still enough to be noticeable.
Elizabeth Swann was one of those people who was fortunate to be blessed with natural beauty. She didn't need make-up to heighten her looks. She rarely ever wore it. When she did, it was just for special occasions. That made Will wonder why Elizabeth would be wearing make-up in the comfort of her own home. He figured that she considered this night to be a semi-important occasion.
"This is the movie I picked out for us", said Elizabeth. She held up a DVD case.
"Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull", Will read. "Elizabeth!" he exclaimed. "Wow! I didn't think you liked these types of movies."
"I do like action movies", said Elizabeth. "They're kind of like my guilty pleasures. And I know you're a big Indy fan."
"I am", said Will. He and Elizabeth were just about to watch the movie, when the doorbell rang.
"That must be the pizza guy", said Elizabeth. "Can you go answer the door?" she asked Will.
"Sure", said Will.
"The money is on the counter", said Elizabeth. "It should be enough." Will found the money. He went to the door. He opened it. Jack was standing there. He held a box of pizza in his hands.
"Why are you here, Jack?" asked Will.
"I'm here with your pizza", said Jack. He gave the box to Will.
"Wait a minute", said Will. "Let me see if I understand this. YOU'RE a pizza delivery boy?!" he asked.
"That's right", said Jack. "You got a problem with that, Will?" he asked.
"No", said Will.
"Jack Sparrow has a JOB?!" Elizabeth asked, as she walked up to the door. "I find that very hard to believe."
"Believe it, Elizabeth", said Jack. "For your eyes do not deceive you. I really DO have a job."
"How'd that happen, anyway?" asked Will.
"After my latest run-in with the law on Mischief Night", said Jack, "Officer Norrington finally convinced my father to let me get a job. He said that having a job was a good way to keep me out of trouble. This was the only job I could find."
"I always wondered what it would take for Jack to get a job", Will said, under his breath.
"What did you say?" asked Jack.
"Oh, nothing", said Will. "Nothing at all."
"That's what I thought", said Jack. "I'd love to stay and chat. But I have other deliveries to make along my route. I'll see you guys at school on Monday." Jack left the house. Will and Elizabeth watched as he drove off. Then they went back into the living room. They began to watch the movie.
"I love Shia LaBeouf", said Elizabeth, with a sigh and a dreamy smile. She was talking about Shia LaBeouf, the actor who played Mutt Williams in the movie. "He's so cute." Will rolled his eyes. "But you're so much cuter", Elizabeth said to him.
"Let's eat", said Will. "I'm starving. He opened up the box. It was a cheese pizza. That was the only type of pizza that both Will and Elizabeth liked. Will took out two slices. One was for him. The other one was for Elizabeth. They each had three more slices later on. About half way through the movie, Will stood up.
"I have to go to the bathroom", he said. "Pause the movie. I won't take very long. It's just that I don't want to miss a minute of the action."
"The bathroom is down the hall", said Elizabeth. "First door to you left." Will quickly went to the bathroom. In his rush, he failed to see that his band-aid had fallen off. Will returned to the living room.
"I'm back", said Will. Elizabeth gasped. She stared at him. Her gaze seemed to be transfixed on Will's forehead.
"What is it?" he asked. He reached up to touch his forehead. "uh-oh", he said, as he felt the pimple underneath his fingers.
"Is that a pimple?" Elizabeth asked. Will nodded.
"It is", he said. "I've had it ever since this morning. That's the real reason I had the band-aid on. I didn't want you, or anyone, for that matter, to see it. I'm so sorry I lied to you. Can you ever forgive me?" he asked.
"I forgive you", said Elizabeth. "And now I have a confession to make. She dipped a napkin into her glass of water. She gently dabbed her chin with it. Some of the make-up came off, revealing that Elizabeth, herself, had a pimple. It was slightly smaller than Will's, and not as red. "It wasn't a headache that kept me out of school today", she said. "It was this. I was so embarrassed to show my face in public. I almost thought about cancelling our date, until I found I could conceal my zit with make-up."
"This is a date then", said Will.
"Yes", said Elizabeth. And here's how we can make it official." She leaned in, and kissed Will on the lips. Will felt all of his worries and fears wash away as she kissed him. He deepened the kiss. It was a very sweet kiss that they shared.
"That felt good", said Will, when they broke apart. "I really needed that."
"Me too", said Elizabeth. They continued to watch the movie. Will had somehow managed to fall asleep. He woke up just in time to see the end of the movie.
"I liked that ending", said Elizabeth. "I wonder if you and I will ever get married like Indiana and Marion."
"We're a little too young to be thinking about marriage", said Will. "And what makes you think I'll be the one you marry?"
"It could happen", said Elizabeth. Will looked at his watch. It was a quarter to ten.
"I have to go", he said. "Thanks for the evening. I had a really nice time." He gently kissed Elizabeth again, on her cheek this time.
"I had a nice time, too", said Elizabeth. "I'll see you at school on Monday."
"Okay", said Will. He walked home. He found his dad sleeping on the couch, in front of the T.V. Will tapped Bill on the shoulder. Bill groggily opened his eyes.
"I'm back, Dad", said Will.
"Perfect", Will said simply. "Absolutely perfect."
"That's good", said Bill. Will went upstairs to bed. The night had turned out better than he thought it would That made him feel really happy.
When Will woke up the next morning, the very first thing he did was run to the bathroom. He checked himself in the mirror. To his surprise, the pimple had completely disappeared. It was if the thing had never even been there in the first place. He grinned widely.
"Oh, yeah", said Will, pointing at his reflection. "I look good."
The End.
A/N: 1. I did it. I actually did it. I wrote my first official Willabeth fic. At last. Finally. I'm not really surprised though. I've always been a Willabether. Practically almost all of my Pirates of the Caribbean stories have hinted at this. And the compass was pointing, (no pun intended), in the direction that I'd eventually write about them.
2. This story is set about 2 or 3 weeks after Mischief Night.
3. This is loosely based on an episode of The Wonder Years, also called The Pimple. In the episode, Kevin Arnold get his first pimple. (Obviously.) And he's supposed to meet this girl. But at the end of the episode, we learn that the girl also has a pimple.
4. I know Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a bit of a weird movie to watch on a date. But I have a reason for picking it. I always knew I wanted Will and Elizabeth to watch a movie. I must have thought about a hundred possible movies. That one finally won out because I really love it. And I also wasn't kidding about the ending. Indiana Jones really does marry Marion Ravenwood. Sorry if I spoiled that movie for those of you who have yet to see it.
