Another Knock on the Head
Part Two
Will finally convinced his eyes to open, but immediately regretted it and shut them tight against the blinding sun directly above him. Now his headache was even worse, if that was possible. All the same, he had woken up to much worse sights than a sunny sky before…then again, he had also woken up to much better sights…
Young Will coughed on the thick black smoke and tried not to panic. He watched as the last of the pirates disembarked on the starboard side and then crept out from behind the barrel where he was hiding. He climbed down the port side of the ship, hoping that the slaughtered crew had managed to lower a long boat before the pirates struck. Even if there wasn't a boat, Will knew he had to get off the ship fast. Those fires had been lit for a reason, but before he had even made it halfway down, he heard a terrible explosion and hit the water hard.
Everything after that was a blur of fire and water. Somehow, coughing and struggling against the water and the sharp ache in the back of his head, Will managed to pull himself onto a large piece of jetsam before blacking out.
Will woke up to what would later be his favorite memory of Elizabeth, although at the time he thought she was an angel. He was vaguely aware of exchanging names and the kindness in her eyes before he lost his tentative hold on consciousness and was lost to the dark once more.
In retrospect, Will thought as he tried extending his other senses to gather clues about his surroundings, I am rather surprised how much I still love Elizabeth, considering how often I have been knocked unconscious because of her somehow.
Living in Port Royal, Will saw Elizabeth quite often, and every time he was driven to distraction. There were several instances Will was nearly run over by carriages or horses as he stopped in the middle of the street at the mere sight of her, and more than once Will ended up struck by hooves or dove out of the way onto unforgiving cobblestones and hit his head. Then there was the time he had been wrestling with some local boys he had befriended…Elizabeth turned a corner and their eyes met by chance; Will was frozen instantly in her gaze. Taking advantage of his distraction, all three boys tackled him at once with a mighty war cry. It was really just an unfortunate coincidence the only rock in the grassy lot happened to be right where his head landed.
It was always worth the headaches, embarrassment, and occasional stitches though, because he always woke to find Elizabeth leaning over him, breathless and worried, looking at him with her kind eyes. Will usually stuttered some apology and thanks, and Elizabeth would joke that it was becoming an entirely too common occurrence, and if it weren't for the blood she would think he was doing it on purpose, just to scare her. Then after he was determined to be all right, she would smile that smile at him, and then they would part again.