IX

I did not want it to end. Ever. This was my future. Beside him. I could see every joyful memory of us, fifteen years earlier, like a theatre play in my head. I had already ruined half of my life with Arthur, faking happiness, wearing that hideous smile I had grown so sick of...

But there I was, resting my head on Jack's chest, knowing my death sentence was near but... smiling. A sincere smile. A smile that warmed up my whole body. In that coldness of the cell, the only warmth came from Jack's body and... my smiling lips. I felt happy. I was at peace with the thought that I had finally followed my heart.

"Jack?" I whispered, trying to look up and see his face.

He patted my head lightly and smiled, "Yes?"

That voice of his was soothing every inch of my tired body. "If we are not to get out of this mess alive... I want to finish what I started fifteen years ago."

Slightly pulling himself away so I had to sustain my head by myself, he raised an eyebrow and asked, "What do you mean, love?" I crawled to get close to him again, and caressed his cheek with the tips of my fingers. I smiled, and leaned in to brush my lips against his.

"I love you, Jack."

There it went. My perfectly romantic scenery. My confession. In a cell. A cell filled with an awful stench. We shared several minutes of silence, while I did nothing but stare into his pitch black eyes. He showed no expression at all. Doubt started to grow inside me, as I started to regret having said those words. I messed it up.

"I know," came his response. A weary smile spreading across his lips, he reached out for the back of my head and pulled me towards him. I had calmed down. It wasn't as if I had expected him to confess as well. That answer was perfect... for the moment. After all, Jack wasn't the romantic type at all. We spent some moments enjoying the taste of each other's lips, before I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him tightly. I never wanted to let go.

"Can you promise me... that you will never leave me again?" I asked him, resting my head on his shoulder. "Promise me you will never let go of me."

"I promise, love."

I hugged him tighter, and with every breath I took, I felt my destiny push harder on me. Some tears started to form in my eyes. Yes, that was what I wanted. But did it really have to end like this? Jack had promised me we would manage out of it alive... but how could he save us? I started to lose hope, but seeing his relaxed face made me more and more confused. Was he just accepting the fact that we were going to die, or did he really have a chance of escaping?

"Jack!" an old man's voice came from behind the bars. I turned around, but could not see his face.

"Gibbs! Finally!"

Jack stood up, letting me fall on the side. "Gibbs? Who is Gibbs?" I asked, dumbfounded. Jack turned around and winked.

"Gibbs is my first mate," he said proudly. I moved closer to the bars to take a look at our saviour's face. He looked pretty damn proud of himself as well. He smiled and took out a key to unlock the cell. "How did you get here so easily?" Jack asked him, exiting and making me sign to do the same.

"Diversion, Capt'n. These guards are too easily fooled. I made one of our men disguise as you and just run away. They ran after him."

I frowned. Well, that's stupid, I thought, making my way outside the cell. It's all to easy. "Jack, are you sure this is safe?" I asked him, before we started to move away. He turned around and looked at me for some moments before reassuring me.

"Do we have a choice?" he asked me. Alright, not reassuring at all. But he was right. We were going to die anyway, so why miss such an opportunity? My legs were trembling, as I followed the two men through the complicated hallways of the prison. We managed to get out unnoticed, and hid in the narrow space between two buildings nearby.

"Where is the Pearl, Gibbs?" Jack asked, almost out of air. The space was too narrow to fit us all and ensure normal breathing in the same time. Gibbs moved his shoulders a little, causing me to almost be crushed against the wall.

"Bristol," came his short, breathless answer.

I coughed, both of shock and suffocation. "Bristol? How are we going to get there unnoticed? It's a lot to travel!" I protested.

"Well young lady whose name I don't happen to know, how was I supposed to anchor the ship in London?"

"Well you could've at least make sure we had how to return to Bristol! And I'm Valerie."

Jack pushed us both against the walls. "Stop it, you two. Lass, you should be thankful we are not breathing that filthy underground air anymore. Thankful to Mr. Gibbs here." He searched his pockets, but gave up, finding nothing. "Gibbs, any pistol?" he asked his first mate, and he was given what he wanted. He analysed it, turned it around and frowned in the end. "It'll do, I suppose."

"We will never find transport, Jack!" I said, trying to bring him back to reality. "We are news everywhere, everybody knows about our death sentence, about our crimes. Nobody is going to willingly take us to Bristol."

He turned his face to me, brushing his nose against mine. "You're right, love. Not willingly." A smirk grew on his seductive lips as a plan started to form in his head. I prayed to God it was going to work.

A/N: Any small encouragement will be highly appreciated, my dearest ones. Even though I know I don't deserve it.

I know I have been neglecting my stories, and I am awfully sorry. I promise this will never happen again, and as soon as ideas start to pop up in my head regarding my other story, A Question Of Lust, I promise I shall update it as soon as possible.

As for this one, It's Called A Heart, I already have the ending in mind. It will come soon so... enjoy it while you still can, I guess!

Is it just me, or does my writing seem awfully rushed lately?

P.S.: I'l return later to correct eventual misspellings/typos/whatever.