All That Could Have Been

(Sequel to One Wish)

Short story, Grace escapes to the Florida Keys while on vacation in Miami. While snorkeling, she finds something horrible and wishes herself back into the 18th century just in time to witness Jack's death.

Chapter One

It was just after the last day of school.

I had just narrowly saved myself from:

-summer school

-an eternal lecture from my parents and

-the loss of all my POTC possessions

Since I had finally, finally, managed to secure good grades – all B's and one A – my parents had surprised me with a vacation in Miami for my 13th birthday. Our hotel was five-star, and we had one of the best suites. It was truly heaven on earth. We spent all our time snorkeling, swimming, and surfing. And I had no bratty siblings to have to share the heaven with. I was on my own, with just a cell phone and one of Daddy's credit cards – he gave me a $2000 spending limit.

One particular day, since I loved being a rebel, I jumped a ferry to the Florida Keys. I was well aware that I would be punished severely if my parents found out, but I didn't care. I was free, and nothing would stop me.

When the boat landed, I ran into the first duty-free shop I found and bought a big canvas backpack (with a locking zipper) to hold my cell phone, iPod, camera, laptop, and books (and sunscreen). After paying the store clerk $42, I made my way down to another small store. I tried to walk as quickly as possible to avoid the scorching 103-degree heat. It was blinding, and I didn't have any sunglasses, and it was starting to burn my pale ski, since I hadn't put on any sunblock that morning. When I finally stepped into the (thankfully) air-conditioned little bamboo-hut sports shop, I was dripping with sweat. I searched along the many aisles until I found what I was looking for: a pair of goggles (that cover the eyes and nose), a juniors' size 2 black-and-red wetsuit, a horde of power bars and Vitamin Water, and a snorkel; I paid the cashier and put everything into my backpack.

When I was back outside, I welcomed the blazing sunshine on my pale face. It was warm and promising. There wasn't a hint of a storm in sight. The entire busy little town was beautiful and happy, full of tourists snapping pictures, their over-sized t-shirts flapping in the breeze. After stopping at one more store – to rent a twelve-speed mountain bike – I began pedaling through the streets.

I rode for a long time, leaving the town and coming to the side of a big cliff. The edge was fenced off so people wouldn't fall in. I rode alongside the cliff, which was incredibly high off of the blue-green Caribbean waters, breathing in contented breaths. This was going to be the best day of my life.

After a long time, I came to a trail that made a break in the fencing. It spiraled downward to the bottom of a cliff, revealing a small, hidden beach surrounded by palm trees and exotic flowers and ferns. I made a sharp turn on my bike and started down the cliff. It was bumpy at first, but then it got smoother. It was fast, and I felt like I was flying. Finally, the ground became flat again, and I braked sharply to avoid tumbling into the ocean. When I got off and dusted the dirt from my denim shorts and off-the-shoulder cream-colored t-shirt, my mouth dropped open in surprise.

The beach was small, but the sand was creamy white, and incredibly soft. I slipped off my Etnies and let it tickle my bare feet. The water was sparkling blue-green, and it lapped foamy-white on the shore, crashing ever so slightly onto the sand in front of me. The tall palm trees and colorful flowers surrounded me, and I felt as if a thousand fairies were dancing around me in colored dresses. This was the most beautiful place I'd ever seen. After a long period of staring, I sat cross-legged in the sand, in the shade of the largest palm tree, and pulled a pen and piece of paper out of my backpack.

Dear Jack, I wrote, today I came upon the most beautiful place in the world. It's in the Florida Keys. It's a tiny hidden beach, only reachable by sea or by a trail leading from a high cliff. The sand is pearly white and as soft as feathers. The sea sparkles like a diamond, and the tree and the trees and flowers are exotic and beautiful. I ran away from my parents' hotel in Florida and came upon this beach. I wish you could share it with me. Love, Grace.

I folded the letter in half and slipped it back into my backpack. I lay on my back in the sand and thought of Jack.

Earlier that year, back in mid-winter, I had met Jack Sparrow. After wishing on a star, I had been whisked off to Port Royal, Jamaica, in the 18th century. I had gotten captured by Lord Cutler Beckett and gotten rescued by Jack. I remember our kiss. Right before I had left to return home, I had kissed Jack. It had been sweet and caring, and it made me tingle just thinking about it. I was careful about wishing on stars now, since I thought it was a little childish. I sat back up and looked out at the ocean, watching as the sun hung high in the sky. Then something in the corner of my eye caught my attention. I stood up.

There was a small opening in the side of the cliff, just beyond a small thicket of flowers and trees. I put my sneakers back on and walked towards it. The plants brushed up against my thighs and nipped at my ankles. As I got to the opening, I saw that it was a small, sunlit cave. The sun peeked in from another opening, higher up, almost like a window. I crept inside and looked around. It was empty, but it was big enough to hold my backpack and my bike (and me, if I needed to sleep). I stowed my gear inside and quickly changed into my wetsuit and goggles. I ate half a power bar and stepped back into the sunshine. I looked out into the ocean. I turned and started climbing back up the cliff, by the trail I had just come down. It was steep and hard to climb, but I made it, barely breaking a sweat. I looked down at the ocean again, this time from the top of the cliff. It was a long way down, and I shuddered a little. Then, without another thought, I backed off, took a running start, and flung myself off the cliff.

It was thrilling. For 75 feet, I was flying. The air rushed around me. Then I plunged into the water. I opened my eyes. For a while, all I could see were swarms of bubbles all around me. When they cleared, I looked down and saw a coral reef. Even though I was far up, I could see almost every color of the rainbow. I swam lower and lower until I was completely surrounded by bright colors. I was in a rainbow. The colors were all around me. I swam all over, looking everywhere and taking in every detail…

…Until something caught my eye. Hanging from a royal blue lump of coral was a string. Hanging from the string were a few colored beads and a small coin. I caught my breath. I knew that string of beads. It was from Jack's bandana. I slipped into the zipper pocket of my wetsuit. As I floated back to the surface, I wondered how the string could have gotten there. I took a deep breath and dove back under. I swam down lower, past where the beads had been, and looked around. I saw a small patch of sand with something brown sticking out of it. I swam down to it and began digging though the sand. What I saw shocked me completely.

It was a skeleton, but not just any skeleton. It had a red bandana, weathered black boots, and a sword.

It was Jack.

I stumbled back onto the shore and burst into tears. I collapsed onto the sand and shook with sobs. My wetsuit clung to me like a hug from Jack. I just cried even harder. Jack was dead. He was gone, and I would never see him again.

When I was finally too tired to cry anymore, I stumbled into the cave and managed to swallow half a bottle of Vitamin Water. Then I walked back outside, where the sun was beginning to set. I lay on a large flat rock to dry off. The sun was still hot, and the air was humid, but the tears on my face refused to dry. I wasn't fully crying, since my lungs were too tired, but tears were still spilling from my hazel eyes. I closed my eyes, hoping to hold back some of the tears.

When I opened my eyes, the sun had set and the sky was full of stars. I sat up quickly. I knew what I was going to do.

"Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight. Please let me go back and see what happened to Jack. Maybe I can save him."

With that, I crawled back into the cave and fell asleep.