Contacting Jim
Hello, my faithful readers! Sorry for the long wait! I've actually just been trying to improve my writing, I really hope this chapter shows all my hard work during that long period of time. But another reason for the long wait was because I was suffering from writer's block. I know what's going to happen after Jim comes into the story, but it's just trying to lead up to that moment that I'm struggling with.
By the way, am I the only one that gets both nervous and excited when receiving reviews? Nervous because I'm scared it's going to be a flame and excited because... It's a review! I love reviews! Haha. Anybody else gets that way when they get a review?
TreasurePlanetJimxZara: Ooooh. Good, good, good! Keep goin'! Can't wait to see how this all unfolds :)
Thanks so much for the review. I'm glad you like it so far. I love your stories as well. I suggest that everybody checks out her fanfictions, they're amazing!
Daladakea: I LOVE THIS SO FAR AND I'M PANICKING! WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN? HURRY AND UPDATE!:) Please have lots of hurt/ comfort and father/son moments in this one.:)
I'm glad you like it so far. "Getting In Too Deep" seemed to be more popular than the sequel, but hopefully I can change that. Sorry that I didn't listen to you considering I haven't updated in about two months. I hope this chapter makes up for it. Oh, and don't worry, there is going to be lots of hurt/comfort and father/son moments in this story. I've already got them planned out. :)
GusCGC: I was really worried bout you, boyo! But glad that this is working this great!
I was quite worried about this story as well. Chapter two was actually going to be about when Silver crashed landed near a hotel and a lady and her five-year-old daughter took him in and patched him up. But I thought that took away too much Jim time so I changed it. I got the idea for chapter two after watching the Treasure Island sequel. Btw, I'm a girl. :)
Myfangirlthings: I love it! Silver is very in character... trying to hide his bond with Jim, afraid to sound "soft". Please, update soon.
Thanks. I'm alright with Silver's personality, it's mainly Jim that I struggle with. But nobody's complained yet, so maybe I'm not doing a bad job with the character's.
Chloe: Oh my gosh! Yes you made a sequel! I can't wait to read it! I love all your stories! You make them so detailed and emotional! I've cried a bit before in 'Getting in Too Deep' and 'Losing a Friend' you did such a good job writing the emotions
Thanks! I'm really glad you like my stories despite the fact that they are quite chunky and needs improvement. But I'm slowly editing them. I was actually considering deleting "Losing A Friend" because that was a horrible story. The only reason I kept it was for the reviews. Keep reading! :)
InsanityOwl: I'm so excited for this story! I read the first one and I loved it so much! I think this is a good idea, so I wish you luck with it. Good luck with the next chapter!
Thanks so much for the review! I'm actually going to be editing "Getting In Too Deep" and adding in new chapters as well because I think the story was a little too rushed. So I'm going to go back and fix it up to make it even better. :)
Eimie1: "Getting in too deep" is one of my favourite stories on this site! I can't wait to see what the sequel brings! :)
I'm glad you like my story, I hope the sequel isn't going to be a disappointment.
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
Jimbo...
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
The lad was in danger and it was all my fault...
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
Maybe I should had agreed with the partnership...
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
Maybe I could had lured him away from the boy...
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
Maybe I wouldn't had been sitting here, worrying over the lad's safety...
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
Grrrr... That noise...
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
Where is that flaming ticking sound coming from!?
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
"Oi, shut yer yap!"
Click. CRASH! BANG!
The room fell silent.
My breathing came out in thick gasps as I tried to comprehend what had happened. My gaze fell upon the destroyed clock, pieces shattered across the wooden floorboards. I just noticed my cyborg arm had changed to a gun, smoke emerging from the tip and floating up to the ceiling like a balloon.
I sat back on the bed, running an aggravated hand across my sweaty face. The more I thought about this, the more worried I felt. Sure, Jimbo was a tough lad. He could definitely take care of himself, but... He was still just a child... A scared, weak and dumb child... He was no match for Edward Thatch... What would he do to Jim if he ever found the boy? Would he hurt the lad? Or just take the medallion and leave? I'm getting far too old for this... All this worrying is going to send me into an early grave... It seemed like all I do is worry about that boy... Great... Now I got a headache...
Knock, knock.
I released a heavy sigh at the soft knocking at my door. It was probably just one of the maids coming to complain about the noise. It was her fault for giving me a room with an annoying clock that doesn't shut up! What's even the point of that ticking sound? Is it like a heart beat for a clock? Does it keep the clock alive or something? I look forward to the day that they make a decent and silent clock. I mean, seriously!
Knock, knock.
A groan escaped my lips, getting to my feet and crossing the room in the direction of the door.
Knock, knock.
"I'm coming, I'm coming!" I yelled, that knocking beginning to annoy me just as much as the clock. The only difference was I couldn't shoot the person to smithereens. Unless, of course, I wanted a thousand cops coming after me for murder. That was the last thing I needed right down.
I swung the door opened, staring down at the maid, nervously twirling her brown hair around her index finger, her gaze down casted to the floor. She seemed to be more interested in her boots than me at the moment.
"Um... I-I heard a loud bang... Is everything alright, sir?" she stuttered, looking everywhere else, but at my face.
I managed a forced smile upon my lips. "Oh, there was just a little... Accident... With the clock..." I explained, glancing to the side where the beaten up modern clock laid, never to tick in this town again.
She nodded, backing away slowly. Maybe it was all these gadgets attached to me. That could be the reason everyone was so afraid to even look at me. "Alright. Sorry to intrude." Her voice was just barely above a whisper, she probably couldn't wait to get away from me.
"It's no problem, lass." I politely tipped my pirate hat.
She was backing away so quickly that she bumped into the other maid. "Susan, do you know where the phone book is? I looked everywhere, but I can't seem to find it." The lady she bumped into suddenly asked, her black hair tied up in a tight bun.
"Oh, yeah. One of the patrons borrowed it. I'll go get it," Susan replied, smiling. She hurried off without giving me a single glance.
I sighed, returning to my room and shutting the door. Now that that was over with, I could go back to the problem at hand. What should I do...? If only I could find out a way to contact the lad... I could at least warn him of the dangers that awaited him... Or... I could always go visit the boy at the Academy... No... That's too risky... If I was caught then Jim would be on his own... How can I possibly help the boy if I couldn't even get close to him... A letter, maybe... No... It would take too long to arrive to the academy... A phone call would be the fastest way... But I don't even know the lad's number... A phone book would come in handy right about now.
Wait a second... Didn't that maid say something about a phone book?
I'm such an idiot...
I leapt off the bed and literally flew out the door, my feet never touching the floor. Once in the hallway, I looked both way for that familiar maid, but there was no sign of her. She couldn't had gotten far. But... Which way should I try first?
Left...
I looked in that direction.
Or right...
Switching my gaze to the other way.
Which way did she walk? Think, John, think!
I released a heavy sigh, slumping against the wall, that hopeless feeling was back, threatening to consume me. I don't understand what was wrong with me today? Normally I'm full of hope. I guess it's hard to stay positive when your friend was in danger... What if Edward already found Jim? What if he was torturing the boy right this second? What if...?
"Silver!"
The lad's cries echoed in my mind, an image of his sorrowful face flashed across my eyes. He was scared... Terried even... With cuts and bruises all over his face and arms... He wanted me... No... He needed me... I won't allow any harm to come to that boy! I won't make the same mistakes like I did before! I will NOT let Jimbo down!
I hurried off in a random direction. My heart struggled to keep up with my heavy breathing. Every minute that passed was another minute Edward was plotting to snatch the boy. I needed to contact him as soon as possible. Warn him about Edward. Then maybe I could relax a little, just knowing that Jim was on the look out for anything suspicious. Maybe even tell the police so he would have a bodyguard. As if the lad would accept that... He loved freedom and would hate to be tied down by the authority.
I skidded to a halt when I saw the familiar brown haired maid, she exited one of the patrons rooms, smiling sweetly as she closed the door. However, her smile immediately fell when she turned around and saw me standing there. She held the book over her mouth as I ascended towards her, forcing a smile upon my face, despite the stress I felt.
"Excuse me, lass." I stood in front of her, towering over the young girl. No wonder she was so scared of me. I was pretty much like a giant to her.
"Um... Yes?" she nervously met my gaze.
"T'at phone book... May I borrow it?"
She lowered the book, her fear quickly taken over by surprise. "Oh, you need to contact someone?"
"Aye... It's kind of... Urgent..." I explained without giving away too much details.
She nodded in understand and I could had sworn I saw a look of sympathy cross her face, but shrugged it off as nothing. "Who will you be calling?"
"W'at?" I raised a questionable eyebrow, not expecting her to ask such a question.
"Who will you be calling?" she repeated the question, her voice soft and gentle. She tucked the phone book under her arm and pulled out a small notebook from her pocket, holding a pen to the paper, preparing herself to write.
"Does it matter?" I asked, feeling slightly irritated, trying not to let my temper get the best of me.
"I'm sorry, sir. But we need to know who our customers will be contacting."
"Alright t'en... Um..." What should I do? I can't just tell her that I was going to be contacting a seventeen year old boy. She'd start asking questions. I need to think of something fast before she started to get suspicious. "Me son."
I struggled to keep a straight face when I saw her suspicious expression. "Really? What's his name?"
"Jim Hawkins."
She ran the pen across the paper, giving a satisfied nod. "Alright then. It's all yours. Just don't forget to return it so the other customers can use it," she explained as she finally handed the book over which I gladly took.
"T'ank ye very much." I hurried off in the direction of my room.
Once back in my small room, I wasted no time in flipping through the phone book. Wow... There sure were a lot of numbers in here... Okay, so what was the name of Jim's school?
...
...
...
Damn...
It's 6PM and I had been looking through this bloody phone book for six freaking hours. Am I beginning to lose my mind? No, not at all. Okay, maybe a little...
How hard could it be to find one freaking Academy number? This school should had been named the Academy. It would had been a heck of a lot easier to find in a 500 paged phone book! Too bad I can't contact Jim and ask him what this stupid school was called. Then again, if I could contact the lad, I wouldn't need this phone book to begin with. That boy better appreciate this after I've gone through all this trouble to protect him. He better be grateful! Geezz... The things I do-
Interstellar Academy - that's an interesting name for a school... Now where was I? Oh yeah..
-For that boy. Spending hours looking through a damn phone book just so I could warn Jim about Edward. I really had gone soft, haven't I?
Wait... Back up... The Interstellar Academy... That name sounded familiar... Too familiar...That's it! I finally found it! Thank hevens... Now I could phone up that boy.
I picked up the phone and held it to my ear, dialing up the numbers I saw in the book. Releasing a sigh of relief when I heard the familiar ringing sound which meant it was working. Thank goodness...
"Hello," a deep voice sounded on the other end of the phone.
I swallowed hard, trying to disguise my voice as I spoke. "Um... I-Is Jim Hawkins there?"
"Who's calling?"
"Joh-" Wait... I can't use my real name... I am a wanted pirate after all... Um... Let's see... What other name could I possible use...?
I frantically scanned my surroundings in a failed effort to think up a good and believable name. Every name I came up with in my mind was stupid or dorky.
"Sir? You there?"
My gaze landed on the curtains. "Curtains," I said a bit too quickly.
"What?"
"I mean... Curt... Me name is Curt... I'm a friend of Jim's"
After a long pause, the man spoke again, not soundly completely convinced. "Alright... Well... James is actually right here in my office."
My heart skipped a beat, imagining the worse. "Is the boy in trouble?" I asked, not meaning to sound as worried as I did.
The man chuckled causing me to blush bright red. "No, of course not. He offered to help me sort through my files. They're all over the place."
I released a breath of air I didn't know I was holding. That sounded much more like the teen I had came to know.
"Did you want to speak with him?"
"Aye, t'at would be great."
I heard a lot of rustling and muffled voices until finally a familiar voice sounded on the phone. "Hello?"
That one word was enough to make me smile. That same innocent voice I had heard just a year ago. It still sounded the same. Wait... What should I say? I never did plan a speech or anything... Would the lad still remember me? Did he still consider me a friend? Or...
"Hello? Um... Curt? Are you there?" Jim's voice brought me back
I swallowed hard, trying to find my voice. I guess there was only one way to find out. "Um... J-Jimbo..." I felt my confidence drop when the other line fell silent.
I knew it... I guess he doesn't want anything to do with me anymore... But... Even if he doesn't... I'll still try to protect him... I would never... Ever... Let any harm come to Jim... That boy was like a son to me and he always would be... Forever...
"Hold on a minute, Curt." Came his reply after several seconds of silence. In the background, I could hear muffled voices, heavy footsteps and a loud bang. "Silver, is that really you?" The tone in his voice took me completely off guard. He didn't seem too happy to hear from me. Infact, he sounded quite angry...
"Aye, lad. It's me..."
"Do you have a death wish, you old scalawag!?" I flinched at the sudden change of volume in Jim's voice. I expected a happier response than this, considering I hadn't seen or heard from him in a whole year. "Calling the Academy like this is not only dangerous, but reckless as well! Do you want to end up in prison!?"
The boy certainly had done a lot of growing up during this past year. He had the nerve to call me reckless when two years ago, he picked a fight with Scroop.
I heard Jim sigh. "Sorry... I'm just worried about your safety..."
"Ye know that I would never contact ya like this if it wasn't urgent."
"What is it? Are you okay?" Jim's angry tone quickly changed to concern.
I almost smiled. Almost...
"It's not me that I'm worried about, lad..."
"What?"
"It's you..." I whispered, tightly clutching the phone.
"Me?" I felt my heart shattered at that innocent reply. He had no idea of the dangers that awaited him. I felt bad, intruding on Jim's life like this, but he had to know.
"Aye..."
"I don't quite understand..."
I sighed. "Listen, boyo. A couple days ago, I ran into an old buddy of mine... And... He is after something that you have..." I carefully explained.
"Really? Like what?"
"That medallion."
"Medallion? You mean this rusty old thing the Captain gave me." I could picture Jim staring down at the medallion in his hands. a confused expression on his face.
"The Captain gave it ta ya?" I asked, quite surprised by the reply. Why would the dear Captain give something like that to Jim? Did she not know what it was? Did she not understand the dangers she put Jim in?
"Yeah. It was a birthday present." Jim's voice broke me from my angry thoughts, letting out a breath of air, ridding myself of the anger.
"Jimbo, listen closely. Edward is after t'at medallion and he won't stop until he finds it. Lock ye windows and doors at night. If ye see anybody suspicious, yell as loud as ye can. Ye got it, boyo?"
"Silver..." Jim's tone suggested that he wanted to complain, but I wouldn't let him do that.
"Do ye understand me!?" I raised my voice, acting more like a father.
Jim sighed. "Yes, Silver. I understand..."
"Good lad..."
"Coming!" Jim suddenly yelled, "Sorry, Silver. I got to go."
"Stay safe, lad..."
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. Bye."
"Bye..."
Beep!
I sighed as I put the phone down.
Even though I was finally able to contact Jim, I still didn't feel any better. I don't know... Maybe it was just nerves... Besides, he's got Morphy with him. The little blob wouldn't let any harm come to Jim. He was a very loyal companion. Maybe I'm just worrying for nothing. The lad would definitely be okay. Right?
Right...?
Yay! Chapter three is finished! Again, I'm really, really sorry for the long wait, but at least we got to see- er... Hear Jim. So... Please leave a review and tell me what you think! I love feedback!
